The Black Prince
by Djibrel
Summary: Lelouch dies at the end of the Zero Requiem and is reborn in the HP world as the son of Sirius Black.
1. Chapter 1 - Sister

"I destroyed the world...and created it anew."

Finally…the culmination of his greatest work.

Red marred the platform as the crowd cheered for Zero, who stood gloriously with his sword pointed at the ground, looking like the symbol of hope he has always been. Lelouch's own vision was taken by the all-encompassing horror in Nunnally's face as she wailed in anguish.

His blood seeped in the ground as his vision slowly darkened. If there was one moment in his life that made him doubt his plans, it was now, under Nunna's despaired gaze. Only at this moment he was uncertain if it was all really worth it.

Nonetheless, it was done. Zero Requiem arrived at it's inevitable end, and with the death of the Demon Emperor, peace would reign.

Would Euphemia be waiting for him? Would she forgive him? Did he deserve any forgiveness? He was certain he didn't. If there was an afterlife waiting for him, it would certainly be red and hot. Maybe Rolo would be there to accompany him? His thoughts started to become muddled. He felt really, really tired, and under his sister's mournful cries, he decided to sleep a little.

...

It was dark and warm. He felt strangely constricted, as if he was dumped into a very small box. Was it his coffin? Did he somehow survive Zero Requiem? That was impossible, unless he somehow took his father's code. He had made certain he didn't though. After his battle with his Charles zi Britannia, Lelouch made certain to inspect his body for any sign of the code mark. So, him surviving made no sense.

But he obviously could think, quite clearly as well. Was it Descartes who said: "Cogeto, ergo sum"? For the first time he saw wisdom in that quote. Nothing like experiencing his own death to make him certain he was existing right now.

Something seemed to move beside him. Was someone else here? Afterlife was surely strange. It was not as red as he thought it would be.

Suddenly his entire would seemed to shake. Strange contractions happened all around him, as if the world wanted to squeeze him to death.

"I can see the head, keep pushing!' someone shouted. Was there someone else here? It took only one more second for Lelouch to ascertain his current situation.

_"Oh, fuck. Reincarnation...alright, I didn't expect this."_

"Come one, Marise. Keep pushing!"

Lelouch could feel light entering his eyes. His awareness of his own body was becoming better. He could feel it now, he was small and roundish. His hands were stubby appendages basically useless for anything other than sucking his own thumb.

_"At least my intellect is intact, I suppose."_

That also meant he wouldn't be meeting Euphemia or Shirley again. Well, maybe, if his mother is a noble, he might meet his sister again?

"He is out. Marise, keep pushing, I can already see her head."

Someone took Lelouch and wrapped him up in a towel before putting somewhere.

_"This is absolutely humiliating. I, Lelouch vi Britannia, reduced to a crying bunch of flesh."_

"That fucking bastard!" Was that his mother's voice? "If I see him again I am gonna kill him! His motorbike wasn't even that great anyway." she screamed.

"The girl is out, Marise...It's is alright now, she is out."

...Girl?

Lelouch brought his awareness to the place between his legs. He was quite certain this reincarnation business got his gender right. He suddenly felt a weight been deposited somewhere beside him.

"I will not take care of them!" the woman that was supposed to be his mother declared. "I don't care what anyone says, they are not mine! The bastard disappears from this world as if he never existed and expect me to take care of his children? Fuck him!"

This...

"But, Marise" the other woman started.

Lelouch finally opened his eyes and looked at his surroundings. He wasn't in a hospital. This seemed to be a bedroom, a rather decayed one. It somehow reminded him of Shibuya. They were speaking in english, though. Was this somewhere in Britannia?

Lelouch suddenly noticed the woman's gaze at him. His mother was still gasping in the bed while the other woman gazed at him in awe.

"Beautiful..." she said. "His eyes are beautiful."

"I don't care!" his mother gasped. "Today, at night. There's that place the whores in the red district leave their children for the social workers. Take them there, I don't want to see them anymore!"

"Marisa, please. They're yours, and they are..."

"Fuck that, Ann. Get them away from me!" She said. "The little shits didn't even have the dignity of letting me abort them. I lost count of how many pills they cost me."

Lelouch stood silently taking it all in. He wasn't a stranger to abandonment. He'd had it worse back then, when his own family made him a sacrificial piece in their own grand game of conquest.

Wait! there was something he had been ignoring until now...

_"Them? What the..."_

Someone was crying beside him. He made an effort to turn his head and look.

There she was. A baby at his side, waving her hands at the air, claiming for attention.

_"A sister..."_

He should be feeling happy. Instead, he felt ice cold horror.

A feeling of panic grasped his heart.

Rolo dying, after a life of being pushed around. First by the geass directorate, then by his own surrogate brother, who developed him into a weapon for his own plans.

Euphemia, sweet little Euphemia. Laughing in madness, painted in blood, as she massacred the people she wanted to save.

Nunnally, her legs broken as she stared into nothing, spattered in her mother's blood. Her accusing gaze as she called out the horrors her brother unleashed under Zero's mask. Her mind-breaking horror as she watched his life slowly fading.

Lelouch wasn't a good brother. He had no illusions he was. He didn't wan't to burden another sibling with his existence.

Was this supposed to be his hell? To live this life with a new sister, knowing he would inevitably lead her to a most horrible ending? It was fitting.

The two woman started quarreling about them. The one who assisted at their birth wanted their mother to take care of them and tried to guilt trip her into it, their mother, though, had no intention of doing it. His sister was crying during the entirety of it. Lelouch was wide awake, taking in any information he could from their words.

From what he could deduce, he wasn't in Britannia anymore. This country's name was England, and that was worrying. There was no country with such name in his last life. How many years in the future is this? He could see a tube television on the corner of the bedroom, so it couldn't be too long since Zero Requiem.

Apparently, his mother met his father in a nightclub, at his friend's bachelor party. In a night of drunken debauchery, his condom broke. No one cared at the moment, though. After he woke, for some reason he immediatly ran away with his friend screaming something about lilies. He never appeared again after that.

His mother tried to find him with the government's help, but it was as if he never existed. "Sirius Black" wasn't registered in any government database at all. She looked for him for months, and there was no trace of him.

After that, she tried everything, short of stabbing her own womb, in order to abort them. They somehow survived everything she threw at them.

_"Interesting."_

"What the..." the woman whispered as she took him in her arms. She furrowed her brows. "Is he smirking?"

...

That day, two new names appeared in the Black tapestry


	2. Chapter 2 - Peace

Julius was a standoffish child. At five years old, he was more well behaved than every other boy in the orphanage, never claiming for attention, never creating difficult for his caretakers. It baffled Alice how...focused he seemed to be. While most children run around the orphanage living their fantasies, Julius watched everything with ominous interest.

His intelligence was obviously abnormal. There's only so many times Alice could see him staring at open books and not conclude he was, in fact, reading the content inside them. His strange obsession with history and geography made everything even more surreal.

She tried asking him once what he was staring at.

"Pretty colors" he answered, unblinkingly.

There were some things in the world one shouldn't look into too deeply, she concluded.

His interactions with his sister were also worrying. He seemed to wordlessly shun her every time she looked for him for attention, but he was always glancing at her when she was playing with the other kids.

Alice was very curious as to who were his biological family. His manners were so sophisticated that he gave her the impression of a noble. The way he held his cup at breakfast, the way his feet slipped soundlessly as he walked through the corridors. His own appearance was very aristocratic. He was slim, with straight black hair and sharp nose.

His eyes, though, they were of a mesmerizing lilac color. Alice caught herself staring at those eyes more than once. Those were not the eyes of an ordinary person

...

Lelouch took his eyes off from the book on his lap and meditated on his situation.

There was no Britannia...There was no area eleven here, no Zero.

Apparently there was some truth in that alternative world bullshit Lloyd Asplund used to talk about. What was he supposed to do in this world? For a long time he had centered his existence in his mission of creating a better world for his sister. But even his sister wasn't here anymore.

He felt aimless.

Ophelia, his new sister, stood some distance away from him, talking with her friends while playing with some dolls. He didn't know what to think of her. She was absolutely different from Nunnally. Extremely active and excitable. She had none of Nunna's demure personality.

He did not feel a connection with her like he had with Nunna. She still felt like a stranger in some ways. Would Nunnally be like that were her not blind and crippled? He would never know.

Their estrangement was his fault though. He made an effort to avoid her. It was just recently she even found out she had a brother. Both of them had arrived at the orphanage with a letter with their names and a request to look after them. In this letter, he was named "Julius Black." after his mysterious father.

The social workers in the asylum never called them by their surnames though. He was only Julius, the antisocial orphan who liked books.

...

"Hey, Lulu!" his sister called for him. Her long black hair flowed lightly in the wind "We are gonna play tag!" she said, confidently. Behind her, two other girls followed.

"Go ahead." he answered disinterested, as he turned back to his book.

She stomped on the ground. "We are inviting you, dumb!"

Lelouch blinked and stared at her. She looked a lot like him. Straight black hair, sharp nose, but her eyes didn't have the royal purple tone he mysteriously brought from his former life. Her eyes were steely gray instead.

"I am not very good at these type of games." He remarked.

"The other boys are saying you are a wimp!" she said. "I don't want them to say that of my brother!"

Lelouch sighed. Ever since that Alice woman clarified their relationship to his sister, she started searching out for him at every chance and seemed very happy to have a biological family, even though she didn't know what "biological" meant. He was mostly ignored by everyone before that, but since his sister was, apparently, a social butterfly, he could not get away with anonymity anymore.

"Can't it be another game? How about Hopscotch?" Tag was very tiring.

His sister seemed to think for awhile. "Alright! Let's play hopscotch than."

There was already a court layed out in the ground of the park. Some distance away, the other boys roughhoused with each other.

In ten minutes of playing, Lelouch was already feeling tired. The girls didn't seem nowhere as breathless as him. He knew a lot of people who would pay to see him like this. Lelouch looked at the sky and gazed at the scorching sun while shielding his eyes.

This world was overwhelmingly peaceful.

For someone who was used to constant and unending war, it was very unsettling. There was no Britannia, no Chinese Federation, no European Union. Instead of Britannia, there was this small island kingdom called England. And instead of the Chinese Federation, there was the People's Republic of China. None of them were nowhere near the superpowers of his former world.

In this world, the American Revolution was successful and Napoleon somehow was stupid enough to march through the Russian winter like an idiot.

Somehow there was no sign of anyone ever discovering sakuradite. Nuclear power in this world was, instead, achieved through the fusion of unstable isotopes of uranium. The possession of a "F.L.E.I.J.A" weapon by the north american government practically forced peace throughout the world and ended the second world war.

It was the ultimate conclusion of Schnaizel's grand ambition...A world forced into peace by an ungodly weapon hovering over their heads. Funny how the bastard lost to Lelouch, but still won in some ways. Fuck him.

Even the wars they called "world wars" were nothing but skirmishes from Lelouch's point of view. His world burned in wars until the entirety of it was shared by only three powers

In short, it was peaceful, and he felt strangely melancholic because of it. Like a war veteran that returns home from a long campaign and can't help but find all that normalcy somehow alien and unnatural.

"Hey, Lulu, you turn!" someone called him. He blinked and moved to stand in front of the big "1" written in the ground. Before he continued, he heard someone wailing.

Some distance away, a group of boys gathered around a scrawny child and continuously rained blows over him. The kid bowed over himself and protected his head in what seemed to be a practiced response. Lelouch furrowed his brows as he watched that scene. His sister followed his gaze and noticed the scene.

"Hey!" she screamed and started marching towards those boys. Her friends followed her. Lelouch rolled his eyes and went after her some distance away.

The boys noticed her and stopped. A rotund kid who resembled a wine cork stood in front of her with a malicious smile while the others kept hitting the downed boy.

"Stop it!" she said. "Why are you hitting him?" she tried pushing him away. The other boys joined beside the pig as he shook Ophelia off.

"The freak deserves it. He is just a freak anyway, why do you care?"

Before she could continue, Lelouch held her shoulders and pushed her away gently.

His eyes did not have the geass anymore, but old habits die hard. He looked the fat boy in the eye and said, in his "vi Britannia" voice. "You don't want to bother this boy anymore, it is getting boring, isn't it?"

When he noticed what he had done, he almost slapped himself. But what happened afterwards baffled him.

"Yeah, this is boring." The boy in front of him said.

One of his friends blinked. "Why were we doing that anyway Dudley?" He said as they started leaving.

"Dunno" the fat boy answered. "Anyway, let's go home play video-games."

What the...How was that possible? He had lost his geass, Lelouch was sure of that. He had tried multiple times to reactivate it after his reincarnation. The characteristic symbol of the geass never once shone in his eyes.

The scrawny child slowly stood up after they left. His glasses were patched up with a band. His head stood low, and he looked at Ophelia with upturned eyes, but he continuously avoided to meet her gaze.

He had every sign of a abused child.

"Complicated..." Lelouch muttered.

Lelouch already had a lot in his plate with this reincarnation business, but it didn't feel right to simply leave it as it was. He didn't want to get involved, but that didn't mean he couldn't involve someone else. Lelouch smirked as a plan slowly came together in his head.

...

Autor Note:

Ok guys, some information here. I decided on a weakly schendule and I will be releasing new chapters every sunday. I will be busy until august 4º, but I already have a bunch of chapters written here. I am not a native speaker, so I will probably incour in some grammar mistakes. Don't be afraid to point them out, just don't be an ass.


	3. Chapter 3 - Abuse

Alice was sitting on a bench in the park with a book in her lap as she watched the children playing. She truly loved this job. Watching her children growing as she took care of them was one of the most rewarding things in her life.

She was a graduate in nursing. She worked for some years in a hightly paying job in a hospital, but could never adapt to the lifestyle. Her parents were horrified when she chooses to leave her job to do something she liked. The job at the Silverland Orphan Home was godsent in that regard. Watching those kids and knowing she had a hand in sculpting their education made her very happy.

Like every mother, though, she had favorites as well.

She almost couldn't hide her laughter when she saw Julius's irritated face as the girls pushed him to play with them. She saw him glance at her with a scowl and soon turned her face away. The boy was very sharp, she had to admit. How did he found out that she was the one to give Ophelia the idea of playing with him?

For all his abnormalities, he had a good heart. She could see the reluctant love he held for his sister. He almost seemed afraid of being with her, as if she would break with a light touch. Even though she seemed to be so much tougher than him.

Something caught her eyes at that moment. Ophelia ran to a boy who was downed on the ground, being hit by some boys. Julius followed.

She wasn't close enough to hear what was being said, but the resolution of their fight felt weirdly off. The bullies just got up and left after Julius told them something.

After that, the girls and Lelouch helped the kid up and talked with him for a while. Ophelia was talking with him with excitement. Julius was holding his chin in a pensive and very...mature gesture.

He traded some words with his sister and started walking towards Alice. The bullied boy followed him on a tow.

Alice smiled. What was that little snake planning now?

"Miss Alice!" Lelouch called out for her with an unnerving childish voice. She almost let her smile slip with the bizarre scene.

"Lulu." she said."Are you having fun?"

"Yeah!" waved his hand happily. "It was so fun! Playing with Ophy...we were jumping so high. It was great, Miss Alice!"

Her smile was slipping. "I...see." She said. That was weird. "So, who is your new friend?"

The boy seemed very timid. He was hiding behind Ophelia, trying to make himself small. It was strange for kids to be so timid at this age.

Lelouch smirked. Alice felt a coldness in her belly. That was not a child's expression.

"Come, Harry!" Lelouch excitedly called for his new friend. "Miss Alice is really cool!"

The boy who appeared from behind Ophelia had an expression that Alice had seen in many children before. Her smile changed from one of genuine happiness to one of reassurance and understanding. She gently goaded him to come to her.

The boy looked at her with distrust. His skin was full of hematomas, some old, some new. His glasses were fixed with tape and his clothes were too big to him.

She tried to engage him in conversation while avoiding any dangerous topics. It didn't take long for her to gather the necessary information. She had a name and a place. Dudley Dursley, Surrey Street. That should be more than enough to help the kid. The orphanage had a working relationship with the police. Child abuse wasn't that uncommon after all, especially among orphans.

When she finished and the child left to return to his relatives, she took the time to look at Julius's face. He was looking at the new kid as he approached his purple-faced uncle. There was no smile in Julius's face now, just a grim expression.

It was at that moment that Alice truly began to understand the boy named Julius. She stared at him in amazement.

He knew. He knew about child abuse. He knew that Harry was facing it at home. He knew that Alice had ways of helping the child. And he knew she would understand the boy's situation as soon as she saw him.

That was why he brought him to Alice, after all.

"Julius..." She stared at him dumbly.

He turned to her and smiled blindingly. "Yes, Miss Alice?" he asked.

She had never seen a happier and more wrong smile.

Somehow, she just didn't have it in her to be angry at him for it. She smiled right back at him and took his hand on hers. "Let's go look for the other children. It's getting late. We have to be back home before five."

"Righto, miss Alice!"

...

Lelouch gazed at the mirror in trepidation.

He was conflicted. While his geass would be an enormous asset in anything he decided to pursue, it was ultimately what killed Euphemia.

He tried to force the power into his eyes, but nothing happened. All the mirror showed to him was a half-nude skinny boy.

It might be that he wasn't putting his heart in it.

"I order you! Serve me!" he said to the mirror. Nothing happened.

"Damn!"

How he used to do it? It had been such a long time... Maybe it had something to do with his tone of voice?

"Geass, activate!"

If a certain witch were here to see this, she would be laughing her ass off.

"Damn witch...she must be wasting my last cents with pizza right now..."

He clicked his tongue in irritation. It just wasn't working. Maybe it wasn't dramatic enough.

He posed with his right hand, pointing at the mirror with it, and smirked. "Lelouch vi Brittania commands you! Obey me, world!"

He heard someone chuckling behind him. He turned his face lightning fast.

The door was half-open, and Alice was looking at him with an irritating smirk on her face.

"This isn't what it looks like." he deadpanned.

"Of course not, your highness. Shall I bring you breakfast?" she said. Her hand was hiding a wide smile, irritating woman.

"No, thank you for the offer, but I shall get it myself."


	4. Chapter 4 - Hobby

Lelouch truly never expected to take up his brother's hobby.

It happened with the sudden realization that he was starting to forget Rivaldz's face. True, Rivaldz was a very forgettable guy, but he was still Lelouch's best friend for years in Ashford. Lelouch wasn't that afraid of forgetting his face, but what was keeping him from forgetting Euphemia's face? Or worse, Nunnaly's?

Lelouch wouldn't forgive himself. He immediately arrived at the playroom and asked for some sheets of paper and a pencil from the caretaker there.

He sat at the multicolored table that stood in a corner of the room and started to draw. It took weeks before his scribbles looked like something other than a stick figure. For the first time in his existence he admired Clovis for something, drawing was hard.

Miss Alice soon noticed his new hobby. On his ninth birthday, she gave him a painting kit and a dozen blank canvas.

His sudden shift of behavior baffled many of the workers in the orphanage. The book child suddenly didn't read books anymore and spent his days in an effort to learn to draw.

As the years passed and he became older and more skilled, he started using the abandoned art room they had in the orphanage. It was dusty and stale. But here he could draw peacefully, without fearing interruption by children running around the place

...

He gave his finishing touches to a painting of Ashford academy's and decided to walk around a little. With nothing interesting to do around the orphanage, he took to taking walks around the neighborhood in the afternoon as a means of relaxation.

Leaving through the wide wooden doors of the orphanage, there was a long yard, dotted with trees, where most children spent their day playing and laughing. Around the yard, stood a short wooden fence with a wide gate and a small cabin for the gatekeeper.

Lelouch walked through the yard, ignoring the other children, going towards the gate when someone caught up to him.

Above him, miss Alice stood smiling. Lelouch clicked his tongue. It was getting harder for him to escape her attention. She was always following him in his outings these days, even though the neighborhood was safe enough to be boring.

He silently acknowledged her and kept his pace. The best way to be free of a bug was to ignore it.

That part of "London" was old. One could see from the square stones that dotted the road. Some of the streets even had grooves, made by carts centuries ago. Some constructions looked abandoned. Some meters ahead, a building was being worked on by men wearing high visibility suits.

Such a third world aesthetic would never be allowed in Pendragon. Progress was imperative there. Useless and obsolete things should be trashed and thrown away. In Britannia, Social Darwinism wasn't a just vague idea, left forgotten to be criticized in history books. It was the foundation of the entire society.

"What are you thinking about?" Alice asked, suddenly.

"I was just pondering on England's fixation with old things" he grumbled.

She swooned. "You are cute when you say complicated words."

He twisted his mouth in a grimace.

Suddenly, her tone changed. "I called the police yesterday, about that boy's problem."

That stirred his attention. "Continue."

She chuckled and patted his head. "If you allow me to do so, your grace."

"I will never live that down, will I?" he groaned. From now onwards, he would always make sure the door to the bathroom was locked when he was inside it. He was far too used to practicing his acting as zero without locking it. Nunnally would never stumble upon it and Sayoko would always knock before entering.

After trying again the next day, he was quite sure he was free of the geass. Since that day, Alice would always smirk when he descended from his room for breakfast. She was holding a Sword of Damocles over his head. It was a golden rate blackmail material, and she knew it.

She suddenly stopped walking, grinned, and stretched her hand. "Obey me, world!"

Lelouch felt his face burning in shame. He facepalmed. "Please...just...stop." He sighed. "So, what happened."

She grimaced. "It was ugly..." she said. "His...I don't even want to refer to them as relatives. His jailers kept him in an empty cupboard for the most part of the day. He was only allowed to leave in order to do housework for them. He prepared their food, swept their floors and was mostly treated like a slave."

She paused and glanced at Lelouch's face for some seconds.

"I see..." Lelouch said.

She hummed "I've been meaning to ask you, Julius...Why are you like this?"

He blinked. "What do you mean."

She sighed. "You do not behave like a child, Julius, not at all. You are nine years old, for god sake, and here I am, discussing on another child's domestic abuse with you like it's the most normal thing in the world."

Lelouch grinned. "I do not act like a child?" held his hand in front of himself and declared. "Obey me, world!"

She laughed. "That was a one-time thing!" she said.

"Well," Lelouch said. "I guess I am just different."

"You are like an adult in a child's body."

"If I am, I certainly won't go around saying."

The silence stretched as the walked. "He was underfed and malnourished. With a myriad of badly healed bone fractures. The policemen were impressed by how the kid survived for that long under those circumstances."

"His relatives are being tried on accounts of child abuse and a whole slew of related crimes." She grinned and mushed up his hair. "We might be welcoming a new sibling soon. Those people were his last living relatives. Take good care of him, alright Julius?"

He turned his gaze above to look at her face.

It was at that moment that a snapping sound rang out from just above them and an iron platform fell from the building. It was falling right over their heads. Lelouch's eyes widened. Alice inclined her head quizzically, oblivious to the coming danger.

Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. The work crew noticed the falling equipment and screamed something, Alice noticed something and looked up. Lelouch held a hand to the sky as if to catch it.

Lelouch was certain that he would die, again. But then, gravity shifted...The falling metal plate made a curve in plain air and crashed exactly beside them.

Everyone stopped.

"O my God!" someone screamed. The entire group of workers started crowding them to make sure they were all right.

"Josh, did you see it?" one of them whispered. "Miracle. That was a miracle."

"It really did turn in plain fall... It was an act of God." an older gentleman said, wide-eyed. "God must have very important plans for you, Miss..."

During the entirety of it, Alice was glancing at Lelouch, who was holding his mouth with a pensive face, trying to understand what the hell just happened

On the evening of the same day, Lelouch stood alone in his bed looking at the ceiling.

What happened that morning? Lelouch did not believe in miracles. Not in ones not of his make. Miracles were made by people themselves. There was no overseeing entity choosing who lives and who dies from an unreachable throne in heavens.

He held his palm in front of himself as he pondered. Was there any parallel between this event and what happened that day in the park? Both events were highly unlikely to have happened without some kind of external influence. Without some force to move those events in a favorable way to Lelouch.

Maybe he was on into something? Both resolutions happened in a way to satisfy his needs.

It was almost...as if he was _geassing_ reality itself

A geass is like a wish, he said to Suzaku. When the platform started falling, he wished it wouldn't fall over Alice. He felt scared of losing the only true connection he had with this reality, even if it was thin and ephemeral.

Did the effects of his geass somehow...changed?

Ridiculous.

He woke up in the next morning groggy and lethargic. Lelouch almost couldn't sleep that night with his thoughts rolling over his head. Alice asked him if he was feeling well during breakfast. She probably though he was feeling scared over what happened the day before.

During his time at school, the teacher called his attention multiple times, as he was falling asleep inside the class and during the lectures. His time in school was already boring. Normally he would just meditate during class. Most teachers accepted his lack of participation since, at some point, he started being regarded as a genius, but sleeping through the class was already pushing the boundaries.

Arriving back at the orphanage he went directly to the art room. Music instruments were lying on the floor gathering dust and aged paint tubes sat forgotten on the shelves.

He prepared an empty canvas over the easel and started drawing contours with a coal pencil.

He had finally decided to draw Nunnally.

Time went by as he tried to remember the contours of her wheelchair. When the outline finally was done, he backed away and admired his work.

Something wasn't right.

At the picture, Nunally was sitting on her wheelchair over a meadow. Autumn leaves were falling lightly over her, and in her hands, she held a paper crane.

Something just wasn't right.

In a flash of inspiration, Lelouch erased her closed eyes and opened them. He mixed a lilac tone and applied it.

Perfect. He smiled. That was how he wanted to remember his sister. Not with the hate-filled eyes she showed during their last confrontation. Not with the despaired expression she had at his last moments. But with a serene smile, looking gently at him, with all acceptance in the world.

He sighed in exhaustion as he covered his painting with a blanked and left the room to check on his...new sister.

Their relationship was evolving with a strange dynamic. Ophelia was constantly seeking his attention. For multiple times now she barged in the playroom and declared. "Julius, Let's play!" or something similar. And it was always something childish and extremely tiring. When he offered to play chess with her, she got bored before he even finished explaining the rules.

Lelouch was avoiding her. He didn't fully understand his own feelings. Was he really afraid that she would end up like the rest of his family, somehow?

Lelouch was a fratricide, a patricide, and a matricide. A slayer of kin in every possible way. Was he afraid of ending up in a situation where he would be responsible for his own sister's death, somehow?

Or was he just afraid that Ophelia would replace Nunnaly in his heart? That he would forget his former sister in favor of this new, excitable one?

In the end, Lelouch decided to simply ignore the problem altogether. He still checked on her frequently, to be sure she was safe and well.

He started walking towards the stairs when he heard an unfamiliar voice and a shuffling of clothes. He stood over the railing and glanced down below.

It was an old man. He was using odd clothes that seemed to belong to the victorian era. In his head, there was a bowler hat. He was using a long beaten coat that appeared to have been forgotten in a wardrobe for decades. His cane was made of contorted wood and looked like a wizard's staff from one of those tv shows.

In fact, he was the very archetype of a modern age merlin. His face bore a disarming smile. His hair was long, but his beard...his beard was just enormous. It was long enough to tuck in his belt. It was a bizarre and disconcerting appearance.

Even so, the staff of the orphanage greeted him warmly as he discarded his clothes on a coat rack, as if his presence was the most normal thing in the world.

Lelouch followed his instincts laid on the floor to hide.

"Good afternoon." the old man said. "This is the Silverlands orphanage, I suppose?"

The Matron answered positively, with a smile. "It is a pleasure to have you here, headmaster."

The man seemed surprised. "Squib?"

The Matron smiled with chagrin. "Indeed, my sister went under your care during the last days of the Grindelwald problem. You might remember a miss Levina Monkstanley

He blinked his eyes. "Oh, of course, unspeakable Monkstanley. I wasn't aware she had a squib sister."

"You weren't supposed to."

He shook his head in dejection, letting some sorrow enter his voice. "Yes, some aspects of our society are still very shameful."

Lelouch was having a hard time deciding if the man was authentically sad, or if he was just a superb actor.

"Anyway, I have some business here today," he said. "I am looking for an Alice Chambers. I don't suppose someone with this name works here?"

The Matron raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Caretaker Alice? Why are you searching for her? Did something happen?"

The old man sighed in sadness "She somehow stumbled into something she has no business with." The hairs in Lelouch's neck raised in apprehension. The Matron made a reluctant expression and the old man sighed in what seemed to be exasperation. "Just a light obliviation. Nothing more."

The Matron still seemed a little reluctant, but in the end, she nodded end left through a door. The old man started to inspect his surroundings in curiosity. Lelouch quickly hid.

A Minute later, Lelouch started hearing footsteps on the wooden floor.

"What is the problem, miss Monkstanley?

The Matron cleared her throat and strained a smile to Alice. "This gentleman here has a message to you."

The old man smiled. All his wrinkles followed suit. "I don't suppose you are Alice Chambers, are you?"

Alice arched her brows in confusion. "I am, yes, is there something you need?"

Lelouch strained his neck to catch what they were doing.

The old man kept his smile and reached for his sleeve. In his hands, he was holding a bone-white stick. He waved it around in a practiced motion and said. "Obliviate."

Alice blinked a little and asked the Matron again. "What is the problem, miss Monkstanley?"

The Matron attempted a smile but failed. "Nothing, my dear, just a mistake. You can go now."

Alice shrugged and left for whatever she was doing before. The old man took his clothes from the rack, bid farewell to the Matron and left through the door, his business concluded. Lelouch hastily returned to the art room. He had the feeling that he wasn't supposed to have seen that.

_"What in Alwin's name just happened?"_

_..._

Autor's note: I decided to release a day earlier since I still have a lot to do this weekend. It is really frustrating that FF gives no means to set a publication date. It would be much simplier if I could just program future releases and leave it there. I don't think it would be hard for FF to set up something like this.


	5. Chapter 5 - Stones

The next day, during school recess, Lelouch was sitting on the lawn under the shade of a tree pondering over those strange happenings in his life. On the floor, before him, there was a pile of stones.

He was trying to wish them into floating.

He's been at it for twenty minutes already, it was still a better use of his time than playing around like a kid and he could also treat it as some kind of meditation.

Some distance away, his sister was chasing away some boys that were bullying a friend of hers.

It was...curious how much she was starting to look like him. Her hair was dark and silky like his own. There was nothing of Nunnally in her, though. She looked so much like himself and so little like his old family...The purple eyes, so common among the Britannian royalty, ware nowhere to be seen. Every one of his siblings had a different tone, with the sole exception of Clovis. Ophelia's eyes were steely gray.

Even scarier was how much Lelouch was looking like his older self. He was a carbon copy of the boy who used to run around the Aries Villa with Nunnally.

Damn. He was getting distracted.

He turned his gaze away from his sister and focused back at the stone.

_"Move!"_

He clicked his tongue. Was he just delusional? There was a word for it in Japanese, wasn't it?

"I, Lelouch vi Brittania, command you to move!"

It simply stood there mocking him.

"Julius!" A cheerful voice called him. Behind Ophelia, a buck-teethed girl smiled timidly.

"Not now, Ophelia," He said, frostily. Damn rock refused to move. Maybe he was really deluding himself. He narrowed his eyes at the rock. There was an element present in every occasion he used the strange power, a "_need_" to be fulfilled. Right now he was just halfheartedly trying to move rocks with his mind.

Should he create the need? Put himself in danger to see if it will work? Was it reasonable to do so?

Ophelia scowled and stomped her foot in irritation. "Come on, Julius. Stop ignoring me!"

He sighed. Was Nunnally ever like this? Demanding and self-centered? He clenched his hands in frustration and returned his attentions to the pile of rocks before him.

"I am in the middle of something important now. We can play tomorrow." he answered.

His sister exploded in anger and stomped on the ground "These are just some stupid rocks!" She screamed. The pile blew apart as if by magic, shooting the stones through the air. It was only luck that left Lelouch unscathed.

His eyes widened and he turned to stare at Ophelia.

The girl behind Ophelia had fallen on her back and was staring at Ophelia in surprise. Ophelia herself took three steps back with a look of horror on her face as she stared at her own hands with wonder and fear.

Lelouch let his hair fall over his eyes and stood up silently. Ophelia cringed, with eyes still wide, looking between Lelouch and her hands. She took a tentative step towards Lelouch, but Lelouch was already turning his back to her and walking away.

He was grinning maniacally.

_"I was right!"_ He thought. _"I was right! and it seems I am not the only one with this mysterious gift."_

The answer to this strange power had to rest with the identity of his father. He still remembers the words his mother said at that moment, just after his birth.

_"It was as if he never existed."_

From what Lelouch could deduce, this strange power responded to a need, but it was _fueled_ by emotions. He needed to conjugate _"need"_ and _"emotion"_ in order to make it work. Keeping himself indefinitely in a state of heightened emotion would definitely impair his judgment, but he could at least test his hypothesis. The scientific method was out there for anyone to use, after all.

He walked through the corridors of the orphanage before finally reaching his personal heaven, the art room. He took one of the dry paint tubes from the shelves and put it on the table. He sat at the chair before it, crossed his arms and drummed his fingers.

What were the emotions he could draw at need?

He closed his eyes and started meditating. It had been a long time since he had last done it. Shinozaki had taught him soon after Britannia's invasion of Japan, to help him deal with all the trauma. It was an ancient practice. People meditated for a large number of reasons, some did it to perform better in martial arts, some look for an enlightenment of some kind, some search for peace of mind. Lelouch was searching for self-knowledge.

Time lost meaning as Lelouch meditated. Seconds turned into minutes, and minutes into hours.

And suddenly, he wasn't in the art room anymore.

...

Lelouch opened his eyes in a room.

It didn't take long for him to recognize this room. He exhaled in surprise. It was the commander's quarters of the Black Knight's first headquarters. He fell on his chair and widened his eyes, taking it all in.

"Am I back in my world?" He asked himself. Was everything he lived until now an illusion? Maybe another geass? A geass capable of making someone live a completely different life? That would be terrifying, but not much different from his father's. It was in the range of possibilities.

His voice was deep. He checked over his body and realized he was back with a teenager's body. He was wearing his Ashford's uniform.

He rose from his seat slowly and checked his surroundings.

There was a table in front of him, filled with dusty trinkets. In the corner of the room stood three mannequins. The first one was nude. The second one...it was wearing his Zero disguise.

Black cape, black helmet. Expressionless and faceless. The perfect embodiment of justice. A being beholden to no nation, ready to judge the unworthy. Heh, he was really inspired when he designed it.

Lelouch approached the outfit with a scowl. He slowly looked it over, from bottom to top, took the mask and rolled it over his hands. The only thing it reflected back was his own face.

"You shouldn't be here," he said. "You belong to Suzaku now."

He returned the mask to the mannequin and went over the next one. It was wearing a long robe of gold and white, with red-eye motifs here and there.

Lelouch grinned. "Demon Emperor..." he said. "Flattering."

Which of them was real? The student? The savior? Or the destroyer? Lelouch smirked as he understood what was happening. "Right now I am the student, isn't that right? That's the mask I am wearing. This is why I was wearing my Ashford's uniform when I arrived here. I am just a powerless orphan right now, trying to go unnoticed."

All of them were real. There was only Lelouch.

"This is my mind," he concluded, holding his chin. "I am inside my own consciousness. I wasn't aware it was even possible to do something like this. Shinozaki never told me"

He left the mannequins and walked over to the long table in the center of the room. Yes, that was what he was looking for.

It was a mess. Piles of objects were thrown like trash here and there. Dusty, forgotten and abandoned like a child's toy after a playdate. It looked like no one had disturbed those things in decades.

The first one was a pistol. It was silver and robust. Lelouch recognized. When he held it, he felt a soul-crushing sense of betrayal. His face distorted in a snarl.

"Damn Kururugi." _Betrayer, emperor's dog, bastard..._

He threw it on the floor in anger. Lelouch gasped as he struggled with his newly remembered feelings.

"Those are my emotions, right?" Lelouch said. "I thought I was over all of it."

Spread over the table there were multiple objects. There was an armband with the sigil of the Black Knights, an orange, a knightmare key in the shape of a feather, the key for the Sword of Damocles and many other trinkets.

Two objects soon caught his attention.

One of them was a heart-shaped locket.

"Nunnally..."

He didn't dare touch it yet. He turned his gaze to the other object and scowled. He thought that, after all this time, he was already over it. He had thrown it away after all, but here it was, hidden in the recesses of his mind, he couldn't be free of it even if he wanted, it seemed.

It was a small cape, red, with the coat of arms of Britannia on its back: a lion interlocked with a serpent inside a field of blue. It was the same cape he discarded the day he renounced his claim to the throne.

_"And what of it?"_ He had said. His face, impassive and uncaring.

Charles zi Brittania.

_"You are dead to me, Lelouch. Dead from the moment you were born."_

"This is my hatred." Lelouch gnashed his teeth, gasping with rising anger. "My hatred for my father! My hatred for Britannia!"

Just looking at it made him grip his hands and clench his teeth in fury. Yes...this was a strong emotion. An useful emotion. Perfect for what he was trying to do right now. He grinned madly.

"In the end, you are helping me, father," he said. "In the end, I am using you, father! just like you used me!"

Inside his mind, he reached for the cape and grasped it with unnecessary strength.

In the real world, his eyes opened in a distorted expression of deeply-rooted hatred as he snarled at the paint tube in front of him.

"Move!"

The tube exploded with a dry sound, spreading paint everywhere, and with enough force to crack the table.

...

_AN: I changed the release day again. _


	6. Chapter 6 - Nunnally

Lelouch kept experimenting with his new power during the next days. He found out two things about it. The first was that it was extremely random in its effects. Lelouch seldom got exactly what he was trying to do. When he tried to make something float, it would change color. When he wanted something to blow up, it would get on fire. The lack of control he had over it was very frustrating.

The second thing he realized concerned the emotions he used to power it. Different emotions had a strong influence on the outcome of this power. He could never get anything to explode using "Happiness", nor could he get anything to float lightly with "Anger".

Dark emotions apparently had very destructive effects.

Could he replicate the effect it had the first time he used his power? When he was helping the Potter kid? If he could do it, he would have a pseudo geass in his grasp, without the risk of it going out of control. It was probably too much to hope for, though.

He rose his head from his homework and noticed his sister staring at him some distance away.

She has been like this since that day, for some reason he couldn't comprehend. She seemed almost reluctant in interacting with him. Was she afraid he was angry at her or something? No matter, it was better for both of them to keep some distance from one another.

When he arrived back at the orphanage, he went back to his work in Nunnally's portrait. He was slowly giving color to her. The more he painted, the more memories of her he remembered. He smiled.

"That's a cute smile you have there, Lulu!" Alice's called Lelouch from the half-open door. He scowled and lowered his brush.

"I could have lost my concentration and made a mistake with your loud voice. And please, knock on the door before entering." he sighed.

She flew towards him and grabbed him in a hug. He tried to struggle out of it, but she held him tightly and cooed. "Who is my grumpy little prince? Yes, you are..."

"I demand you release me!" He shouted in panic, struggling to leave her arms.

"Just a little more..." she said. "My chubby little conqueror of Rome."

He struggled a little more before relaxing in her chest. "...fine," he said.

They stood like that for some seconds before she released him. "So" She turned to his work in progress. "Let's see what you are working right now...oh, what a cute girl!" she said.

Lelouch just silently stared at his painting, before answering with a gentle smile. "Yes, she is, isn't she?"

Alice might have noticed a tone of melancholy in his voice because her own voice took a quieter tone. She pulled Lelouch to her side and they stood in an awkward half-hug. "Did she have a name?"

Lelouch was silent for some seconds, a little stunned by her use of past tense. "...Nunnally, her name was Nunnally."

She just nodded, probably filing the name right away to research later.

"So..." she said. "What happened between you and Ophy? I haven't seen you talking with each other for almost a week..."

"Well..." he frowned. "She's made a new friend at school, I think she is just excited over it. There's no problem between us."

Alice stared at him silently. There was no smile on her face. "You are a very good liar Julius. It's almost as if you were an adult."

Lelouch smiled bitterly. "Yes, yes, you already told me."

The silence stretched until Lelouch started to feel uncomfortable with it. He turned to face Alice and see why she was taking such a long time to answer. She had a strange expression on her face.

"I did?"

Lelouch rolled his eyes. "Yeah, don't you remember? That day in the park, when I introduced you to the Potter kid."

She frowned and looked at Lelouch in confusion.

"What are you talking about?"

He looked at her expression, searching for any sign of a joke, but she really didn't seem to know what he was talking about. Lelouch's eyes widened. "You don't remember..."

She twisted her mouth. "I remember going to the park with you and the other kids. We stayed the whole day there. You played hopscotch with your sister during the entirety of it."

Lelouch stared at her with a stunned expression. Suddenly, he stood up and slapped his forehead, his eyes wide in realization. "_Obliviate_," he said, his pupils trembling, his mouth tasting the strange word. "Of course, _obliviate_, I should have realized..."

"What are you talking about Lelouch?" She was increasingly nervous.

He shook his head. The old man messed with her head. Memory alteration? Was it a geass? Like his father's? it certainly looked like one. The worst thing was that the Matron was in on it. He couldn't tell Alice about it. For her own sake.

He breathed deeply and sighed. It wouldn't work to just laugh it away and say it was a joke. Alice was biting her lips with a very serious expression on her face. She would notice his bluff.

"Alice," he said, pushing into his childish voice every authority he could. It was strange to impersonate Zero with a child's voice. Alice's eyes opened in surprise at his commanding tone. "I can't answer what this is about now. I can only beg you not to dig any deeper." he sighed. "I don't want anything worse to happen to you"

She didn't seem convinced, Lelouch decided to push harder. He smiled gently "Although I find you extremely irritating at times, before I noticed I had already started caring for you like an older sister. Please, just drop it."

There, perfect delivery.

Alice smiled gently at him and pulled him into a hug. He smirked inside her arms.

...

Ophelia was sitting in the garden, staring at her hands while biting her lips. She was asking herself the same question she has asked herself for years now.

Did Julius hate her?

Her eyes strayed to a penguin plush sitting at her bed.

She felt small tears rolling from her cheeks. Sometimes she certainly had that impression. If Julius didn't hate her, then he certainly feared her now. After all, he finally found it.

He has finally found that she was a freak.

It has been happening for years now. The Matron always appears when it happened, and for some reason, she doesn't call out Ophelia on that. She doesn't comment on her weirdness and somehow fixes whatever mess she makes. There was that one time that she made the coffee turn into coke, that other time she made an older boy's shoelaces turn into spaghetti, and now this...It was getting worse by the day.

Julius had finally seen it...and he just turned his back at her and left. He was probably disgusted, wasn't he? God, she could have hurt him...

Her feet started moving by themselves as she walked through the orphanage. She wasn't paying any attention to where she was going. Her mind was drifting back to Julius's semblance as he left the yard that day.

When she noticed, the door to the art room stood ominously in front of her. She gulped nervously. That was her brother's sanctuary. Was Julius there right now? She hoped not.

Ophelia slowly opened the door to the room to look over it.

She had come here before, many times, intending call Julius to play with her and her friends, just to be stopped on her feet by his stoic and uninterested expression. When she gathered up her courage and called him, he just smiled hollowly and made some empty promise, like "afterward" or "not right now."

It was disquieting. Weren't they siblings? Shouldn't that mean something? Sister Alice said that being siblings meant they had a more special bond than everyone else in the shelter, she said it meant their relationship was special and magical, and that they should love each other even more so because of it.

Ophelia heard of such bonds at school. Many of her school friends had siblings, and when they complained about them, there was always an undertone of love and care in their voice.

There was nothing like that in her relationship with Julius. He treated her like a bother. He didn't even try to bully her, like her some of her friends' brothers did, he simply avoided dealing with her.

Why does he treat her like that? Did he really not give a damn about her?

The room was very dusty. Old objects were being stored here since a water infiltration started in the basement of the building some years ago. Sunlight entered in streams from the small windows near the ceiling, liting the dust dancing in the air.

At the center of the room stood a covered painting.

Alice said Julius was very talented in painting, but he didn't like to show his creations to the other caretakers. He seemed to not like them at all. And he already barely could stand Alice.

Ophelia was curious. She wanted to see it. To see the painting his brother was creating and dedicating so much of his time into.

The painting he deemed more important than Ophelia.

In trepidation, she slowly approached and gently lifted the white cloth that was covering it.

In the picture, there was a garden. It was a very refined garden, with marble arches and colorful flowers adorning it.

In the center of the picture, there was a girl. Ophelia exhaled in surprise. It was a young girl. Only a little older than Ophelia. She was wearing a white dress and sitting in a very strange chair. In her hand, she held one of those weird paper cranes she saw Julius making sometimes. What was its name? Orikami? Doriami? She didn't remember.

The girl was smiling gently at Ophelia. It was a very...accepting smile. One that would forgive Ophelia for everything, whatever everything meant.

She took note of the girls face... Her nose and eyes...there was just something that...

Ophelia's heartbeat quickened

The girl's eyes...She had Julius' eyes.

A purple so deep she felt like drowning in it, but whereas her brother's eyes held intelligence, sharpness, and coldness, the girl's eyes held emotion, love, and understanding. Her nose as well...small and elegant, just like her brother's. The girl resembled her brother Julius more than Ophelia herself.

Why?! Who was she?!

She moved her hand to touch the girl in the portrait, but stopped halfway as she heard a voice.

"What are you doing here?" Julius said.

He was standing close to the door, staring at Ophelia with a cold expression she still hadn't seen, until now. The faux smile he always carried was gone.

"L-Lulu..." she backed away from the painting

Julius ignored her and walked over to the painting. He looked it over with a flash of...love? In his eyes? He shook his head and covered it up gently and carefully. Ophelia watched everything in confusion.

"Lulu...who is she?" Ophelia asked, in a whisper. Her eyes held a touch of reluctance.

Her brother stared at nothing for some seconds before turning to Ophelia "Don't touch it." his expression was sad and reluctant. "And don't come back here, please."

Ophelia bit her lips as small tears gathered in her eyes. Julius hated her...and he was afraid she would damage his painting with her weirdness. She looked at him to searching for answers, but Julius wasn't looking at her. He was just staring at the covered painting.

Ophelia let out a sob and ran out of the room.

...

AN: A little earlier because I still have a lot to do the next days.


	7. Chapter 7 - Memory

Lelouch stood there, looking at the door of the art room, trying to organize his feelings. He didn't hate Ophelia. In fact, at this point, he was pretty certain she had made it into the very small list of people in this world he had any concern for. He was certainly going to help and protect her if she ever needed it from him.

He wasn't certain he could ever care for her like a sister, though.

He uncovered Nunnally's portrait with all care in the world. The painting wasn't his sister, but with the lack of the real one, anything that reminded him of her was a treasure.

They had gone through hell and back together. He still remembered her small weight at his back as they traveled through fields of corpses during the Britannian invasion.

"It's just a swamp." he had answered when she asked him about the smell of rotting corpses as they walked through the battlefield trying to find shelter.

"What should I do Nunna?" he asked as he stared into the portrait. He felt afraid of caring for his new sister now even more than he already did. He felt afraid that, if he let her in, she would, one day, take Nunnally's place in his heart.

Maybe he was being stupid, though. His bond with Nunnally was iron-bound at this point. There was probably nothing in this world that would make him love her any less.

But would it be fair to Ophelia? to care for her while still holding Nunnally strongly in his heart?

What would Nunally say about it? That he was an idiot, probably, and that both of them could certainly fit in his heart.

Lelouch smiled bitterly. Sometimes he wasn't sure he even had a heart at all.

He looked up at the portrait and let his hand wander through his sister's face. He truly wished he could talk with her about his problems right now.

Suddenly he felt a wave of dizziness and a sound of exhalation. He blinked his eyes and shook his head.

It was probably just sleeping deprivation.

"Lelouch?" he heard. The name brought him to a halt. No one should know that name. He looked up and stared in wonder at the portrait in front of him.

The Nunnally in the painting was staring at him, in wide-eyed surprise.

...

"A memory..." Lelouch whispered. Nunnally smiled sadly at him from the painting.

They had been talking through most of that afternoon, since the moment she woke up. Nunnally cried as soon as she saw him. The Nunally in the painting was aware of the Zero Requiem and she was inconsolable and furious with Lelouch.

Lelouch was completely lost in what to feel. Here she was, the sister he has been thinking of for most of this life. The sister for the sake of whom he destroyed the world and Brittannia.

Sadly though, she wasn't real.

"Your memory, to be honest," she explained, smiling gently. Nunnally looked over herself in wonder and continued. "I have no idea how this works" She touched her hair with curiosity. "The only thing I know is that I am made out of your memories of Nunnally. I am a perfect representation of the Nunnally in your mind and heart."

Nothing but a fantasy then. Lelouch smiled sadly. "So, you can't grow or change can you?"

She nodded. "It is weird..." She answered. "I can move and talk, I fell I am Nunnally, but I know I am a portrait. How is that even possible?" she cooked her head quizzically.

Lelouch frowned. "Things have been strange lately..."

"Yes, strange..." she rolled her eyes. "We have a lot of things to talk about, nii-san. Starting on how can you possibly be alive. I am pretty certain the last thing I saw was your death."

Lelouch smirked. "Maybe Death didn't want to deal with a Demon Emperor and threw him back to life or something."

She giggled "Also." she pointed at him. "Why do you look like how you did when we were still living in the Aries mansion?" she asked.

Lelouch scowled.

"You look cute pouting like this." She smirked. "Should I call you otouto instead?"

Lelouch sighed and started telling her his story. He told her most of the highlights of this new life he was living. About how this world was peaceful. About his life in the orphanage, and the strange happenings around him. Even about Alice.

What caught her attention the most was the mention of a sister.

Nunnally smiled. "I have always wanted a little sister..." she said, bitterly. "But I never dared dream about it. I was blind am crippled and our mother was dead. I was already a burden to you, nii-san, I didn't want to be a burned to anyone else..."

"You weren't a burden to me, Nunnally..." he gazed into her eyes as he answered. Nunnally smiled gratefully.

"Can you tell me about her? What does she look like?" she clapped her hands "Better yet, bring her here, we need a tea party to welcome the newest member of the family." She grinned.

Lelouch turned his gaze away from Nunnally in reluctance. Nunnally caught on that. She frowned, crossed her arms and glared at her Brother. "Lelouch, what did you do to our sister?"

Lelouch sighed.

...

In a closed room, at the top of an old castle in Scotland, an old pen was busy writing dozens of letters. Halfway through, it stopped. Something confused it.

At the letter before it, it was written:

_Lelouch vi Brittania, Silverland Orphanage, Surrey._

Something just wasn't right in that letter. The pen metaphorically shook its head and the letter was shredded into tiny pieces. Another blank sheet flew in front of the pen and, again, it started writing.

_Lelouch Julius vi Brittania Black, Silverland Orphanage, Surrey_

No...Somehow, it just didn't make any sense! He was Julius, and he was Lelouch, but he wasn't Julius Lelouch. They were two pieces of a whole, but the whole didn't truly exist?!

The pen started flying erratically. Stacks of letters around the room were shredded one after another as the pen tried to work around a problem it just wasn't made to solve. Wrong! All wrong! It would have to start everything from the beginning.

It returned to the letter in question and tried once more.

_Julius Black, Silverlands Orphanage, Surrey_

It wasn't perfect, but fuck it. The letters had to be ready by the start of august and the pen wouldn't waste any more time in an identity confused pre-teen. That was the headmaster's problem to solve and the pen had nothing to do with it.

...

A week later, Dumbledore entered Rowena's study. A frazzled pen stood silently over a stack of letters.

Dumbledore smiled. "Ah. I see the letters are ready for..."

He didn't finish his sentence as the pen flew towards him and tried to stab him in the face.

...

...

...

Lelouch's bloody form stood in front of her. A sword thrust into his heart. His imperial robes, red with his blood. His eyes hollow and his face sunk. His voice was raspy and weak.

"Why did you turn your back on me...why did you betray me, _Kallen_."

She awoke with a scream.

A dream. Just a dream...

She was gasping for breath and sweating profusely. Kallen took a deep breath and waited for the bloody image of his body to disappear from her mind before dropping her head in her palms tiredly.

It had been three months since Lelouch's death. And she couldn't forgive herself. She couldn't forgive herself for not stopping his idiot, dumb, absurd plan.

Zero Requiem...such a stupid idea, it grated on her that it worked so well.

Looking back, it should have been obvious. For all his failings, Lelouch never showed any interest in ruling the world, it held nothing of interest for him. How did he even manage to convince her? Was she just that stupid? Kallen took the pillow in front of her and threw it on the wall in anger.

That bastard. He was such a _liar_!

Kallen felt small tears gathering at her eyes. She achieved it didn't she? She freed Japan. She defeated Brittania. She should be ecstatic, everything was going so well...Villeta was pregnant with Ougi's child, Tamaki opened a bar. Nunnally became the 100th empress of Britannia and was righting many of Brittania's wrongs. Even Kallen's father welcomed her and her mother back into the Stadfeld family, after kicking out her ugly bitch of a stepmother.

The entire world was ushered into a new era of peace and union with the death of the Demon Emperor.

Then, why did she feel so empty?

She knew why.

At some point, it wasn't just about Brittannia anymore. It wasn't just about the Black Knights anymore. It wasn't even about Zero or Japan.

At some point, it was about Lelouch.

She had finally started to understand Jeremiah's motivations. His obsession with serving and protecting his liege. How he based his value as a person in being able to do his duty.

She had finally understood a knight's honor.

And she felt dishonored.

She wasn't able to save the man she had swore she would protect. She let him walk towards his own death and the only thing she could do as she watched it was scream a "stop it!" that probably no one heard.

She felt like a failure.

The morning sun was already brightening her room. She put on her uniform and got ready for school. Before leaving her room, She picked the Guren key that was resting on the table and wore it on her neck.

After a lethargic breakfast, she started walking towards the Academy. Kallen sighed, shook her head and put on a false smile on her face.

She met Gino in the corridor. He waved to her and she smiled back.

"Hey, Kallen, guess what happened?"

Kallen sighed. She wasn't interested in hearing him prattle right now. Gino started talking about various things and she completely ignored, nodding once in a while just to make it seem she was paying attention.

They were walking towards the student council room when a blond-haired boy stepped up before her. His face, a mask of hate.

"It is your fault!" he shouted. " You fucking elevens should have stayed down! It is your fault my father lost his rank! It is your fault Emperor Lelouch is dead!"

Kallen frowned and lowered her center of gravity a little in a practiced motion.

"Hey, hey, man" Gino approached the boy slowly. "Calm down, alright..."

The boy spat on the floor. "Knights of the Round, what a joke."

Everything happened in a flash. The boy took a pistol from inside his clothes and pointed it at Kallen. His face twisted in an insane grin.

"Hail Britannia! All Hail Emperor Lelouch!"

Gino moved to stand between her and the bullet, but he was late for a half a second.

"Die, Zero's dog!"

The bullet pierced her on the chest.

Blood flowered from her chest. Kallen fell in her knees and tilted sideways. The world around her fell into chaos almost immediately. People were screaming, some were already holding the boy to the ground. Others approached her, trying to help. Gino was looking at her with an expression of utter horror. Nothing was making much sense, as her hearing slowly turned off.

Everything was silent. She smiled.

She had lived well, hadn't she? She accomplished what she wanted to. She freed Japan and avenged her brother. Maybe she would finally meet him again? Maybe she could finally apologize to Lelouch for being unable to save him?

Her eyes closed.

When she opened them again, she was in a very, very strange place.

...

AN1 Some of you guys thought Lelouch hated his sister, but that wasn't the case here. I might not have been able to make it clear. He is just very confused right now and is afraid that by associating with her, he will destroy her, like he did with the rest of his family. Deep inside, he is also afraid of replacing Nunnally.

AN2: Other characters will make appearences as well, but it will always fit the story. I won't be going out of my way to bring a character into the story just for the sake of it. Kallen is the only one I will be bringing back this way. It always annoys me when an autor brings only a single character (normally the protagonist of the original series) into another world. Most times, it makes the entire past experiences he had irrelevant and it ends up feeling like a self-insert, unless the autor is really good.

AN3: So guys, this is the time to decide. Will it be Kallen or Harem? Leave it in the comments. If I do a harem, it will probably be Kallen/Daphne/Luna, but I don't know how well that would work, and I won't force it if it doesn't, anyway.


	8. Chapter 8 - Black

Minerva McGonagall checked over the address of the letter in her hands for the third time and looked at the looming building in front of her. Her heart was pounding in her chest and small rivulets of sweat were rolling down her face.

When Albus called her, telling her they had a problem, the last thing she expected was to find out that the famous death eater, Sirius Black, had children with a muggle woman years before his capture at that Halloween night and that they had been left forgotten in a muggle orphanage, without anyone ever knowing about their existence.

Talk about a _black_ horse...

Minerva had no idea of what she would find here, but she heard legends about muggle orphanages and she wasn't all that happy with what she came to know. Dumbledore had told her that this orphanage was quite well cared for and that a squib was Matron in it, but Minerva had trusted Dumbledore with the Potter boy, just to find out that he had been living in a cupboard. In a cupboard! She didn't feel safe leaving the well being of her students with Dumbledore anymore. Not after that revelation.

The door opened and a pudgy woman smiled at her. "Madame McGonagall, it's an honor, please, please, come in."

Minerva blinked. "Are you Matron Sally Monkstanley?"

The woman smiled. "Indeed. Indeed. I was already expecting this visit. We have been having...incidents with one of our children. Nothing too dangerous, but it has been growing in frequency these last years. I recognized it for what it was the first time I saw it."

The woman entered and gestured for Minerva to follow her. "Maria! Please, prepare a cup of tea for our visit here," she called a passing cook. She turned to another woman and called her out. "Alice, can you fetch Ophelia for me?"

Ophelia...that was the name of the Black girl, wasn't it?

Minerva sat in a chair and sipped the fuming tea as she waited for Sirius' daughter to arrive. The woman returned with the girl a few minutes later.

Whatever were her expectations for the girl, she certainly wasn't expecting what she saw.

Instead of a less insane Bellatrix, she saw an insecure eleven-year-old. She looked very nervous and was constantly fidgeting with her skirt.

The girl had straight black hair that fell on her shoulders and pretty grey eyes that showed only childish innocence. Minerva smiled in relief. Thank Merlin. She seemed very well behaved for a Black child. Minerva wouldn't know what to do with another Bellatrix

"Come sweety." The Matron called the child. "Greet Miss Minerva."

The girl smiled timidly and waved her hand "Hi, Miss Minerva!" She fidgeted a little "Miss Sally said you wanted to talk to me. What is it about?" she asked, nervously biting her lips.

Minerva smiled and approached the girl, lowering herself to her level.

"Hi, little one." Minerva started. "My name is Minerva Mcgonnagal, I am a professor in a very special school for very special people. People like you."

The girl's eyes bulged and she seemed somewhat fearfull. Minerva smiled reassuringly. The girl started looking around her in anxiety, searching for somewhere to run. Minerva had met children like that before. They were aware of their powers and were afraid of them and that people would find out about them. The best thing to do with people like that was to take everything out of the way at once.

Minerva took her wand and smirked. "Let's have a little chat, shall we?"

She waved her wand and, before the girl's wide-eyed fascination, two comfortable chairs suddenly appeared. The girl took two steps back as her mouth opened mutely. But Minerva wasn't done. She sat on one of the chairs, took a box from her clothes and offered a struggling chocolate frog to the girl in front of her.

"Do you want one. I reckon that they usually make these talks easier."

...

"I am not a freak." the girl said after Minerva told her about magic. The relief from her voice made Minerva feel somewhat guilty.

She smiled in understanding and put her hand over the girl's "No, you are a witch, Ophelia." Minerva made a reluctant expression and continued. It wouldn't be good if she found out by other people, by the wrong kind of people. "Your...father was a wizard too." she sighed.

The girl's face turned to look at her in shock. "I have a father!?" she shouted.

Minerva nodded. "Yes. I am sorry to be the one to break this news out for you, but your father is a criminal." she continued. "As far as I know, he isn't even aware you exist."

"Why!?" The girl bit her lips. "What did he do?"

Minerva shook her head in dejection. "I am going to tell you more afterward. I don't want to have to repeat everything."

Minerva stood up from her chair and addressed the Matron, who was standing up beside the girl, quietly patting her shoulder in reassurance.

"So Miss Sally, where is the boy? Why didn't you bring him yet?" Minerva asked.

The Matron looked at her in confusion before righting herself. "Oh, you are talking about Julius, aren't you?" she asked and shook her head regretfully. "It is a shame, Professor Minerva, that the male line of the Black family would die like this..."

Minerva frowned. "What do you mean?"

The woman sighed. "The boy is a squib. I have not seen an ounce of magic from him since he arrived here eleven years ago. It is really a shame. The boy is clearly a genius. I have yet to see anyone in the orphanage win against him in a chess match."

Minerva blinked.

"That is impossible," She said with finality and reached inside her clothes, giving the Matron Julius's letter. "Rowena's pen is connected to a magical formation encompassing the entirety of Great Britain. It will only write letters to magical children. Not once in Hogwarts's existence, the pen was wrong."

The Matron stared at the letter with an expression of utter surprise on her face. "How..."

Minerva shook her head. Foolish woman.

The Matron left the room in a hurry and returned in seconds while wiping sweat from her face with a cloth. "I asked one of our workers to fetch the boy. He will be here soon."

Minerva didn't respond. In less than a minute the door opened to let in one of the caretakers and a short boy. Minerva approached with a smile to greet him the same way she did with Ophelia, only to stop and gape at him in shock.

The boy looked her over from bottom to top with the refined air of a noble house heir. His movements were smooth and graceful. There was not a smidge of insecurity in him. He reminded her of a younger Lucius Malfoy. He twisted his mouth in irritation.

"So, was it you who wanted to meet me?" he asked, his timbre, clear and his pronunciation, impeccable. His expression was unconcerned. As if Minerva didn't represent any kind of threat to him. His eyes had a deep amethyst color, cold and calculating. There was never a Black with such eyes, but he _was_ a Black, Minerva had no doubt about it.

He arched his eyebrows in an inquisitive gesture at her silence. Minerva was still staring at him in surprise.

"Is there anything else?" He sighed. "I have things to do."

At that moment that she felt a very ominous sensation swell up inside her. She had the distinct impression she was meeting someone of a far higher rank than herself.

That boy frightened her.

She parsed her mouth and nodded dully. She didn't even notice when she started treating him as an adult. "Indeed. I am Professor McGonagall, from the Hogwarts School of Magic and Wizardry."

AN: Sorry for the wait. Hectic weekend


	9. Chapter 9 - Wand

A week later, Minerva returned to introduce Lelouch and Ophelia to the Diagon Alley. A wizard uh... He still liked the warlock title better.

C.C would find it funny either way.

They entered a dusty pub. It was mostly empty, except for a man at the balcony who was drying a cup. He saw the teacher enter the pub and smiled at her. "So, more muggleborns, eh? There are a lot of them this year."

The teacher sighed. "No, these aren't muggleborns, Tom. It is a long story. You will probably be hearing about it in the Daily Prophet soon."

He blinked. "Oh...well, I won't keep you busy. Go ahead, professor Minerva, have a nice day."

She left through a backdoor with Lelouch and Ophelia following closely. In front of them stood a moldy brick wall. The witch retrieved a stick from her sleeve and started to tap at certain points on the wall.

The thing was a wand. It was the same kind of object the old man used when he messed with Alice's memories. By now Lelouch was already aware of the identity of that man. Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts, Order of Merlin, first-class, Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards, and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot. Most of those titles meant nothing to Lelouch for now. He would have to fix that soon.

From what he could already gather, the wizarding culture was highly hierarchical and filled with is owns small customs and platitudes, very similar to the britannian court. He would have to learn those as fast as possible if he wanted to survive in this society.

The wall opened, showing a very busy street. It was one of the most bizarre things Lelouch had ever seen. People walked around wearing long cloaks that seemed to come from the middle ages and stereotypical pointy witch hats. Stores selling cauldrons, objects moving on their own, weird animals glaring at the people on the street, bizarre decorations that seemed to come directly from one of Milly's wild delusions.

"What in the emperor's name..." he murmured.

The teacher glanced at him curtly and continued. "This is the Diagon Alley. It's the most frequented and the largest wizarding district in England. It is also very old, dating back to the times of Merlin. It is here that we are going to get your school supplies."

Lelouch frowned a little and asked the question that had been bothering him for a while. "Who is going to pay for our things?"

Minerva twisted her mouth a little in disgust and answered. "As your father seems to still be alive, you don't have access to the Black fortune yet. There was also no trust fund set up for you or your sister. The school will be paying until the time you gain access to your family's vault."

In other words, when his so-called father dies.

Lelouch almost clicked his tongue. Ophelia was to busy to understand what that meant as she looked around in complete fascination. His education was completely under the headmaster's control, they were also putting Lelouch in his debt. He hated owing favors.

"I believe our first stop should be Ollivander's. Please don't stray, follow me." she strolled through the crowds with Lelouch and Ophelia following behind.

The teacher stopped in front of a store and opened the door. A small bell ringed noticing the owner about their arrival. Behind a counter stood an old man who looked to be in his sixties. He had frazzled gray hair and a pair of old glasses, the bedraggled appearance Lelouch has come to associate with Lloyd Asplund, the pudding earl.

And he was staring at Lelouch in undisguised wonder.

Minerva coughed to call his attention. The man blinked and looked at her. "Oh! Headmistress." He smiled at Lelouch and Ophelia. His gaze seemed to stay longer in Lelouch "Hogwarts, right?"

Ophelia nodded animatedly while stealing glances at her brother, whose face was as hard as stone.

The man smiled. "Alright, alright..." he said, as he approached Ophelia and asked for her arm. He measured it with a tape and turned back to the shelves behind the counter. "let's see...hmm...here!"

He took a dusty wooden box from the shelves and presented it to Ophelia. He opened it with a dramatic gesture.

"Unicorn hair and cherry, perfect for a sweet girl like you." he smiled. Lelouch twisted his mouth in disgust.

Ophelia received it in fascination. "Unicorns are real?!"

The old man chuckled. "But of course. Dragons, phoenixes, even ghosts are real!" he said. "Now, why don't you try it? Just wave it like this." he motioned with his hands.

Ophelia tried to imitate his gesture with the wand. It resulted in a shower of sparks flowing from it. It was a beautiful display of magic.

"Magnificent." the wandmaker said. "It really fits you well. It is a quite uncommon combination for a Black child, I must say."

Ophelia widened her eyes in surprise and the old man just winked secretly at her. Minerva shook her head in irritation. "We don't have time for this, Olivander. Find the boy his wand and we will go our way."

The man smirked at Minerva. "Now, now headmistress, do you want to take this magical moment away from these children? I still remember how happy you were when you got your first wand. The wand bonding is a defining moment in every wizard's life. Let's take our time shall we?"

The man turned towards Lelouch and that curious expression of wonder returned to his face. "I can already see that yours will be a hard one to find, Mister...Julius. You are a very...singular one, aren't you?" he smiled.

Lelouch narrowed his eyes with a bored face.

The man turned back to the shelves behind him and took another box from it, opened it and presented the wand to Lelouch.

"Ash and Dragon Heartstring," he said. "Try it."

Lelouch took the wand on his hands, weighted it, and waved it.

The wandmaker's hair caught on fire immediately. He grinned, snapped his fingers and the fire went off.

"You don't need to be this aggressive, Mister Julius." He said and turned back towards the shelves, took another box from it and presented it to Lelouch.

"Try this one," He said. "Ebony and phoenix feather, I think it will go well with your character."

Lelouch scowled, picked up the wand, and waved it.

A screech was heard throughout the room. The wand struggled in Lelouch's grasp as if it wanted to get away from him. It flew out from his hand like an arrow with the pointy end pointing towards Ollivander. It missed his face by centimeters and pierced one of the boxes on the shelves.

Ollivander turned to stare at him. "By Merlin, you are a violent one, aren't you?"

He caressed his beard. "Not dragon heartstrings, not phoenix feather, maybe another unicorn? like your sister?" He said as he took another box from the shelves.

"Ash and unicorn hair. I am quite confident in this one." he gave Lelouch the wand.

Lelouch rolled his eyes and waved.

The wand flashed in his hand like a flash grenade, blackened, and slowly turned into cinders. Lelouch frowned.

"I won't pay for this one. It was a defective product."

...

What followed was a mind-numbing repetition of trying and failing. Every wand Ollivander presented Lelouch resulted in a different disaster. At some point, Minerva left the shop with Ophelia to buy their school supplies and left Lelouch there with Olivander, who was becoming more and more excited. It was disconcerting how much he reminded Lelouch of the insane Britannian scientist.

At some point, he stopped giving Lelouch new wands to try. He just stood, with a hand under his chin, thinking. Ollivander fixed his glasses, parsed his mouth and mused. "Can it be? Another?"

Lelouch started to tap his feet impatiently.

Ollivander blinked and looked at him. "Wait here," he said, entering the back of the shop.

He returned minutes later levitating a large wooden box. It was written "1800 -2000" on its side. He put it in the middle of the shop and opened it.

Inside it, there were about a dozen wands haphazardly thrown around and forgotten. Their forms were strange, stranger than the ones Lelouch tried before. Some of them were as long as staffs, others as short as pencils. Some were etched with gold, others were as ugly as a tree branch. He noticed Lelouch's expression and explained: "My family is old, Mister Julius, even older than the sacred twenty-eight. Even older than yours." he said. "We have always been wandmakers, but above everything else." He grinned "We are artists."

Lelouch rolled his eyes, The man continued."Every wandmaker is an artist, Mister Black," he said, waving towards the box. "And every artist has moments of inspiration."

"Or moments of inspiration usually result in very...exotic products," he said while taking a staff etched with what seemed to be nordic runes. "Not fit to display in the store, that's for certain. We usually just store it at the back where no one could stumble upon. These wands are very...temperamental."

"Ou commercial products are made of only three kinds of cores and twelve kinds of wood." He explained. "I must confess that it is quite boring to make them. Our _artworks_, though..."

He took another wand from the box and his eyes shined in excitement. "Once or twice, in every century, someone like you appears, Mister Black...someone who needs a special kind of wand."

"Try this one. I made It when I was thirty years old, it is one of my favorites. I made during a trip to South Africa, I was quite inspired at the time. Basilisk fang and cedar, Try it."

Lelouch tried, but it failed again. They started going through each of the wands in the box until Lelouch had gone through every one of them. Every time he failed, Ollivander's smile widened.

Ollivander returned to the back of the room and brought another box. This one looked old and battered. On its side was etched "1800-1400"

Lelouch scowled and tried again.

They tried dozens, maybe hundreds of wands. Every time they went through a box, Ollivander returned with another. This happened until Ollivander returned from the back of the shop, carrying another wooden box. It was so rotten and dusty that it seemed to have come from a catacomb. It had holes here and there. Some spiders were leaving these holes as the wandmaker disturbed their home for the first time in ages. A cockroach skittered through his sleaves and disappeared inside his clothes. He was grinning like a loon.

On its side, there was only a faded "BC" carved.

He opened it and another dozen weird insects skittered away from inside. "Come here, child," he said, looking at Lelouch with a weird fascination "Follow your heart and choose one..."

Lelouch approached and looked inside the box.

There were only about four wands inside it.

It was interesting to see the evolution in wand design throughout the ages. The first ones he tried were sleek, made with great workmanship, polished and varnished.

The ones he was looking at right now were dull, rough, matte and ugly. No luster, no beauty. Their only ornaments were small celtic designs around their handles.

One immediately caught his eye. Lelouch moved to grab it.

It was a very short wand, just a little longer than a pencil. Black as coal. It had pointy thorns all along its length, Lelouch would have to handle it carefully not to hurt himself. Was that natural or was it etched in the wood? Its handle was adorned with celtic braids that were already a little faded from age.

Ollivander's hand was trembling.

Lelouch waved it.

There was no disaster this time, there was also no shower of sparks. Instead, a choir of what seemed to be voices reverberated through the room. Was it chanting something in old english? The boxes trembled a little before everything went still.

Ollivander had fallen on his back and was mutely staring at Lelouch. Lelouch looked back at his wand and smirked. "I think I like this one." He said, "What is it made of?"

Ollivander gulped and breathed out.

"I..."

He gulped again and stared at Lelouch.

"I...have no idea."

...

He found Minerva and his sister in a bookstore. Ophelia was biting her lips in dejection. Apparently, their money wasn't enough for her to buy a magical animal, which she really wanted. Lelouch released the tension he didn't even notice he was holding. Ophelia wanted a cat. Lelouch hated cats.

An owl would be useful though, to keep contact with Alice. Well, nothing he could do about it for now.

While Minerva was paying for the books in the counter, he stepped outside the store to look at the people passing by. Was there ever a place like this in his original world? A hidden magical society no one ever knew about. He would probably never be able to sate that curiosity.

He saw a man approach a trash can and throw away a newspaper. Lelouch looked around, stealthy picked it up and hid it inside his clothes. No one seemed to notice it.

Children were filling the streets that day. Every new school year would be like this, he mused. A family of redheads stood in front of one of the shops discussing something about a broom while one of the boys grappled with his sister, who soon had him in a grappling hold. A bush-haired girl literally skimped through the street as her parents followed just behind her.

A giant of a man, with an affable smile, gave a big white owl to a boy with patched up round glasses, shaggy hair, and a strange scar on his forehead.

Lelouch blinked.

"It's him." Lelouch whispered. The boy. He was the reason Dumbledore went looking after Alice and erased her memories.

Lelouch clicked his tongue. He was playing a game he didn't even know the rules for. He was diving blindly into this world.

He needed pieces, urgently.

...

_AN: This is where I start to expand the HP world. You guys should read about Alwin I, the first Emperor of Britannia. _

_AN(2): BTW, this chapter was a hassle to write. I just couldn't get a cool enough idea that hasn't been used a hundred times before in other fanfics. I hope it worked well enough._


	10. Chapter 10 - Song

The next days Lelouch spent almost every second he had devouring the books Minerva had bought for him. In less than a week he had read the entirety of this semester's history book and was already halfway through the book on charms.

"This makes absolutely no sense." he complained and sighed. Apparently, the magicals of this world never thought of applying the scientific method to their abilities. The books he had in hand gave no explanations to the underlying principles of magic. They just said. "It is like this because it is."

He had found some interesting information though.

"Harry Potter," he mumbled and chuckled. "Savior of Magical England, what a joke." Nothing more than a pitiful kid.

Another interesting passage of his book was about his father. "Sirius Black", death eater and right-hand man to the dark lord. He betrayed his best friend's location to the dark lord and was thrown in Azkaban, where he rots to this day. His betrayal resulted in the death of the Potter patriarch and his spouse.

Voldemort... Lelouch had learned French when he was still in Britannia, it was the official language of the EU, after all. It meant "Flight from death". Someone with such name would never be able to play his Requiem. Lelouch snorted dismissively.

His research answered some questions he had about this new father of his and brought about a dozen new ones. Sirius must have been caught soon after he impregnated Lelouch's mother and probably never had a chance to find out about their existence. Some things made no sense though, why would a pureblood supremacist ever have shown interest in a muggle woman? From everything he could already understand, muggles were little more than cattle for most purebloods. He should have been disgusted by her. It was just like this in Britannia. Numbers were considered less human than Britannians and most nobles were disgusted by them.

He also researched the place he would be attending soon. Hogwarts was an enormous castle with a long history and dozens of legends that stood on a rock in the middle of Scotland. The students were separated into different "houses" and were made to compete with one another in a variety of subjects. It was a very "Darwinistic." system. His other father would applaud it.

Survival of the fittest was the maxim Britannia lived by. The unfit would fade into obscurity, and the strong would prevail. This rule wasn't relaxed inside the royal family and nobility. If anything, it was even stronger. The brutal competition between siblings made sure only the better genes would be passed on into the next generation. There was a very good reason every Britannian Emperor had a hárem of at least ten women: It was to have a greater gene pool for the natural selection to choose from. Some of them were bets, others were sacrifices, whetstones for the one who would one day become emperor.

Lelouch was the end result of almost a hundred generations of Britannia's brutal social Darwinism and, ironically, Nunnally as well.

Lelouch smirked. Slytherin, the house of the sly. The book tried to explain it in a dumbed down and politically correct language, but Lelouch could read between the lines. That was the place where the pureblood supremacists ended. And he was pretty sure it would be his house. He ticked off most of the boxes.

He was a half-blood though. He would have to make them respect him. He would also need to keep his sister away from harm. There were sure to be people wanting revenge on his family for what happened to their dear little savior.

He sighed.

"What is it, Lelouch?" Nunnally asked him from the painting

"Things are going to become hectic again soon."

...

Dumbledore was worried.

As Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot and Supreme Mugwump of the ICW, he had access to an enormous amount of information from every magical government in the world. Everything important eventually found its way to his table, at the headmaster's office in Hogwarts.

The document sitting in front of him right now was no exception to this.

He caressed his beard once more and fixed his glasses to read it again

_A world remade, a requiem played_

_A prophecy broken, a command spoken _

_Of long dead blood, a king reborn_

It was a prophecy.

And it wasn't the only one he received recently on his table. Strange prophecies started being made here and there soon after Harry Potter's birth, eleven years ago.

None of them seemed to be talking about him though.

This particular one he was staring at right now was made by a seersinger of a wizarding community in northern Ireland. They were a special kind of seer with Celtic magical heritage who, instead of reciting their prophecies, _sang_ them.

The letter describing the event didn't hide the bystander's fascination.

It happened during a lunar eclipse. She was bathing with the help of her handmaidens when suddenly she stood up and started walking in the nude towards the town. The handmaidens followed, filled with worry. A witch attempted to stop her with a stupefy, but the spell just bounced off her.

She stopped in the middle of the town, under the amazed eyes of the entire village. The moon was blood red, like a demon's eye looking over them from a crack in the sky.

She then started to sing her prophecy in A minor, in a slow and mysterious tone.

_"Her voice was filled with an echo that seemed to come from the depths of time." _the letter said. "_During the entire event no one seemed to care about her nudity, the only thing that existed in the world was her voice and the foreboding feeling we felt in our hearts."_

This was worrying. The passage where it talked about a broken prophecy was especially bad. There is a rule in divination called

the Fundamental Law of Retraction. According to it, every prophecy will, someday, be fulfilled.

Unless it is contradicted by another prophecy.

In other words, for a prophecy to stay unfulfilled, another prophecy _needs _to be spoken, making it clear that the first one just isn't valid anymore. He just hoped this prophecy wasn't talking about _that _prophecy. If it did, his plans would worthless.

He shook his head and went back to his work.


	11. Chapter 11 - Smell

Lelouch stood beside his sister in front of the station. Both Alice and the Matron were accompanying them. The revelation he was a wizard didn't surprise Alice as much as he thought it would. She was probably already used to his weirdness.

"So, my little emperor of Rome is going away." Alice cleaned fake tears. "I am gonna miss him so much."

Lelouch smiled in bitterness, he still didn't feel at home with that name. Julius Kingsley was a name his father had decided for him in his last life, after he had wiped out Lelouch's mind of every memory he had of Nunnally. He looked back at Alice and saw her fragile smile. He could see that behind her playfulness, she really would miss him.

She had the right to know, didn't she?

"Not Rome." he crossed his arms, feigning childish impertinence.

She chuckled and messed up his hair. He pushed her hand away and looked up at her, this time with a serious expression.

"Of Britannia," he said. "My name is Lelouch. Of Britannia."

"Oh," she blinked, a spark of realization in her eyes. "You don't like Julius?"

Lelouch shook his head. "No, it isn't even my name anyway."

Julius Ceasar conquered a small piece of Europe. Lelouch vi Britannia had the entire world in his hands.

She looked at him as if he was a puzzle to solve. She put a finger in her chin thoughtfully "Lelouch vi Britannia?" she chuckled. "Isn't that what you called yourself that time in the bathroom?"

"Please, don't remind me of that"

"But then, if I start calling you Lelouch, I won't be able to call you my little emperor anymore." She pouted and cleaned fake tears

The corner of his mouth rose in a half-smile. "I can assure you, you can still call me 'little emperor'." He said before suddenly changing the topic."I will return for Christmas" Lelouch smiled gently, with an expression that felt odd on his face. "Thank you for taking care of me, Alice."

"Farewell then, Lelouch, of Britannia." She smiled, approached and caught him in a hug. Lelouch relaxed in her embrace. Did his mother's arms ever felt like this?

He hoped they didn't.

He waved his hand at her and headed for the brick pillar in front of him. His sister was following just behind him.

Their relationship had become strained ever since she saw Nunnally in the art room. It didn't bother him though.

He wanted her as far away from him as possible. Clovis, Euphemia, Schneizel, Rolo...Even Cornelia, he did almost kill Cornelia, didn't he? Of his siblings, the only death he didn't regret, not even a little, was Schneizel's.

At least this sister, he promised himself, this one wouldn't die because of him.

They arrived at the entrance to the train when a childish voice called out for his sister. "Ophy!"

A girl was waving at her some distance away while she ran towards his sister. Bush-haired, buck-toothed. He had seen her before. She was his sister's school mate, right? What was her name again?

"Mione!"

They embraced each other in a girlish display of affection that reminded him of his times in the student council. Lelouch chuckled and turned to look around him.

Magicals had a very strange sense of fashion. Robes that covered the entire body, dusty leather pants, bizarre pointy hats... There was no sign of jeans or sneakers. It was like coming to a renaissance fair. These were common in Britannia.

Britannia always had some kind of obsession with Arthurian legends, knights and whatnot. It was a way to strengthen the cultural identity of the nation. A united population made for a powerful nation. It was one of the reasons Britannia had always prevailed over the E.U. They were a mosaic of nations, each one with their own culture and way to see things. Decisions took a lot of time to be made, especially if they were unpopular. It was inefficient, especially in times of war.

That said, renaissance fairs were fairly common in britannia. There was even a holiday for them.

Some distance away, the same family of redheads he had seen at Diagon Alley stood. Damn, they were noisy.

Lelouch sighed and left for the train. It didn't take long for him to find an empty room. He took his trunk and put it beneath his seat with all the care in the world, Nunnally's painting was there after all.

He learned recently that magical paintings were a thing. Honestly, it was a miracle he was able to animate Nunnally's painting with accidental magic. It wasn't supposed to work like this at all.

The door opened suddenly. his sister and the Hermione girl made to enter before they stopped suddenly. Ophelia seemed hesitant to enter his space. Lelouch said nothing and turned his face back to the window. She made her mind and stepped inside the compartment. They sat in front of Lelouch and started chatting animatedly about their expectations of Hogwarts.

After some minutes they heard a commotion outside

"This is abuse! This is an abusive relationship!"

"Shut up, Ron. You were practically begging for it."

"Don't defend her, Fred!"

"Differently from you, our little sister is awesome. And I am not Fred, I am George"

Someone knocked at the door. A redhead boy opened the door, stuck his head inside and asked rudely. "Sorry, every other compartment is full, can we seat here?"

A feminine voice called out from behind him. "At least introduce yourself, idiot!"

He was pulled by the back of his shirt and the door opened fully to reveal a redheaded girl around the same height as him. She nodded in a greeting and smiled softly. "I am sorry about him. He had an accident with a potion when he was younger."

The boy grumbled about something and introduced himself. "Alright! I am Ron Weasley. This is..."

The girl interrupted him before he could continue. "Karin Weasley. It is a pleasure."

Ophelia smiled and introduced herself. "I am Ophelia, this is my friend Hermione." Whether she deliberately avoided her surname or simply forgot about it, Lelouch didn't know. But it was probably a good idea to take that out of the way first. Keeping secrets like these didn't work well for him in his first life.

Lelouch took his face away from the window and faced the redheaded girl and the boy. The girl was about to say something to him when she suddenly stopped, her eyes opened in surprise. Lelouch smirked and held his hand for them to shake. "It is a pleasure, I am Julius Black."

The girl didn't react to his name, instead, she was wordlessly staring into his eyes. The redheaded boy's eyes widened in realization. "Black..." he whispered with a note of horror. "As in the traitor death eater, Sirius Black."

Ah, there it is.

Lelouch smiled. "Indeed," he answered. "My father seems to be a famous man."

"Your father?" The boy muttered, before widening his eyes and pointing accusingly at Lelouch. "You are the son of Sirius Black!"

The boy wasn't very bright, was he? Lelouch raised his eyebrow. "Isn't it exactly what I just said?"

At that moment the girl seemed to return to reality as she pinched her brother in his kidneys. He made a girlish screech. "Sit down, Ron," she growled.

Ron sat in front of him, beside Ophelia and Hermione. Karin sat beside him and she was staring at Lelouch with an unflinching fixation. It was...disturbing. Ron's expression was a mixture of childish anger and suspicion. After some minutes, Lelouch just couldn't take the silence anymore.

"I there something on my face?" he asked Karin, scowling. It was getting uncomfortable.

"Your eyes are purple."

Lelouch blinked. "And what of it?" he asked.

She didn't answer, instead, Ron stood up suddenly. "Why are we here getting chummy with a Black?" he scowled.

The girl sighed. "Sit down Ronald. Wasn't you who claimed this was the last compartment?. That's why we are here."

Ron scowled and growled at Lelouch. He smiled calmly at the boy.

"Ron!" Karin snapped at him.

He mumbled something and went back to glaring at Lelouch. "I'll be keeping my eyes on you, Black."

Karin sighed. "Sorry about him. A lot of light families suffered in the hands of yours. Most won't be receptive to you."

"Foolish." Lelouch chuckled. "To turn away the chance to make a potential enemy into a powerful ally is stupid."

She narrowed her eyes at him.

"Who would want a traitor Black as an ally?" Ron snarled. "So that you can knife us a the back?"

"Ron..."

"Ah come on, Karin! You can't be serious." He stood up and pointed accusingly at Lelouch "They are evil! All of them! do you remember what Bellatrix did with..."

"Shut up!"

Everyone turned to see Ophelia. She was standing, gnashing her teeth while small tears rolled from her eyes. "My brother isn't evil!" she sniffled. "He might not be the warmest person in the world. But he isn't evil, I know it!"

Karin widened her eyes. "He is your brother?"

Ron opened his mouth in surprise and pointed at her. "You are also Black!"

Ophelia nodded at him while she cleaned her tears with her hands.

Ron was wordlessly opening and closing his mouth. Hermione stood up and glared at him hatefully before taking Ophelia in a hug and calming her down.

"Wow, your brother is a bully, miss Karin." Lelouch snarked.

Karin sighed and sat back on her seat.

...

He looked like Lelouch.

It wasn't just his physical appearance either. He moved like Lelouch, he gestured like Lelouch, he even smirked like him.

Karin sighed.

Did he really? She had left that life behind for more than a decade now. There was a far greater chance that her mind was just playing tricks on her. It would be too much of a coincidence.

Hagrid was guiding them through the watery tunnels beneath Hogwarts. The boats were creaking on the water as the oars moved on their own. Karin was glancing at Julius from time to time, trying to find tells to connect him to Lelouch. He was sitting just in front of her, leaning on the side of the boat with the hand on his face, looking through the opening between his fingers, staring around him with vapid attention, but giving no clue of it.

Exactly like Lelouch.

His words on the train as well. The way he can't help but consider strategies at every moment. The nonchalant persona he so carefully crafted for himself.

"First years, follow me!" Hagrid said. Karin pushed herself out of the boat and followed the group through the tunnels inside the castle until she appeared in a great hall.

The newcomers were absolutely mesmerized by the sight. She wasn't, at least not that much. The twins had told her about the sorting in detail. They had, in fact, already prepared for the small chance she was outed as a transmigrator by the Hat, as improbable as it was. There was an enormous prank ready to explode as soon as the hat gave any hint of outing her.

In the middle of the chaos, they would take the hat, hide it, and burn it. Problem fixed

Professor Minerva was already calling the students in alphabetical order. Harry Potter was one of the first to be called. The hall made a lot of commotion during his sorting. He was sorted into Gryffindor, even if he didn't look the part. Small, skittish, insecure. The hat must be drunk or something. After him, that girl from the train, Hermione, Ravenclaw?

"Weasley, Karin"

She breathed in deeply and sat on the stool. The Hat rested in her head comfortably.

_"Hmm, let's see here..." _Suddenly, it went rigid for some seconds, before relaxing again._ "Wow, this is my first time sorting a transmigrator...I didn't know it was even a thing."_

_"I hope I won't have to tell you to keep it a secret?"_ she asked.

The hat grumbled. _"What do you think I am? I am a thinking hat, I am also a singing hat, but I am not a tattling hat. Burning me? really? Damn, you guys are evil."_

_"Let's see here...hmm. Loyalty, a lot of loyalty, but not exactly to your friends. You are loyal to them, to a measure, but that day, had your lord not lied to you, you would have left your friends for him in a drop of me wouldn't you?"_

She didn't answer, but the hat already knew it.

_The hat chuckled. "Don't be too down. You ended up doing exactly what he wanted, even if it wasn't exactly by the way of an order. Hmm, let's see...Ha! Here it is! Bravery, pride, courage. By Merlin, it has been a long time since I had last sorted a true Gryffindor. I see nothing of that foolish glory-seeking tendency most of them seem to have...Also nothing of that deeply hidden insecurity as well. Impressive, I must say. You certainly belong in..."_

"Gryffindor!"

The first ones to stand up and applaud were the twins. They were screaming and whistling. Karin rolled her eyes and walked towards the empty chair beside them.

"We kept it free for you," Fred said, giving a one-armed hug to his sister

"We knew you would be sorted here" George gave her a thumbs up.

She smirked. "Thanks, guys." she sat down and concentrated in the next sorting. Maybe it would give her a clue. Was she just delusional?

"Black, Julius"

The entire hall silenced almost immediately. Whispers of "Black" sounded in the spacious hall. The boy stood up walked towards the stool with a careless smile on his face, everyone closed their mouths in expectation. The only thing that resounded around the hall were his footsteps.

He stopped in front of the stool and looked over the crowd like a king overseeing his subjects. He smirked and sat on the stool.

Professor Minerva approached him with the hat. The hat was still a foot away when it shouted.

"Slytherin!" it said.

Lelouch's robe started turning into the Slytherin colors. A crest with a green snake appeared in his chest and his necktie turned green as well.

The professor blinked. The entire hall seemed confused. Even the headmaster stood up from his seat and took off his glasses. The hat hadn't even touched him.

"But I didn't even..." MacGonagall started.

"Are you a hat?" the hat asked, impatiently.

"What?"

"Are you a thinking hat?" it asked again

"No, but why does that..."

"The boy is as Slytherin as they come. He was practically bred for it..." the hat said, frowning, there was some measure of confusion in its expression. "I could smell his poison since he first set foot in this hall. And I don't even have a nose."

The silence that followed was only broken when Julius stood up from his seat, slapped his clothes, and wordlessly walked towards his seat in the Slytherin table with a serene smile on his face.

...

Autor's Note: I am sorry Ron, but it is almost like you were made to be bashed. I...just...can't...stop it. You guys can relax though, this won't be a bashing fic, I hope. I promise I will try to keep it at an minimum.


	12. Chapter 12 - Pathetic

The sorting ceremony continued. Karin still couldn't stop glancing at Julius. He was sitting with the Slytherins and was already talking with his housemates as if they were old friends. She also noticed her brother's expression of wariness. That sorting had been very uncommon, to say the least.

She took George's sleeve and whispered in his ears. Fred also approached from the other side.

"He looks like Lelouch," she said.

George blinked. "You mean, like.._.that_ Lelouch?"

She nodded.

The twins were the only ones in this world that knew of her origins. It was very hard to keep secrets from them. She slipped up somewhere around her seventh birthday and ended up blurting everything out to the twins. To her surprise, they found the fact that their sister was an otherworldly revolutionary soldier pretty well.

"Do you think he could be?" George asked. His voice was unusually serious. He probably thought she was deluding herself.

She stopped and considered. She turned to look at Julius again and saw him smiling as he gestured towards an older student. The student laughed and Julius smiled.

Kallen nodded slowly. It was improbable, it would be a very big coincidence, or maybe divine providence of some kind.

But she could clearly see Lelouch's shadow over the boy's gestures, though. Kallen mentally took away some of his baby fat and tried to see how he would look like in about five years and she had a very close approximation of Lelouch.

She bit her lips and nodded again. "It...might be him." She said. And she hoped.

Fred raised his eyebrows. "Well, I have always wanted to meet royalty." He shrugged.

"Black, Ophelia..." Minerva called from the stool. For the second time in the day, the entire hall went silent. The girl walked to the stool with a very different behavior when compared to her brother. She was insecure and fidgety and was avoiding the crowd's eyes as she walked towards the stool.

She sat in it and Minerva put the hat on her head.

It didn't take a minute for the Hat to scream

"Gryffindor!"

There was no applause, no cheers, just deadly silence as she walked towards the Gryffindor table. She approached the end of the table and it opened up as every student tried to keep as much distance as possible from her.

She looked around the table wide-eyes, in confusion and dejection. She didn't know, did she? She had no idea she would be hated like this once she arrived Hogwarts.

Kallen sighed. The adults probably didn't want to break it to her that her schoolmates wouldn't be very accepting of her ancestry. She didn't expect she would be judged that much for the actions of people she didn't even know. The girl came expecting to be well received in this new world of magic and wonders and found out it was exactly the opposite.

She was refused and repudiated.

Ophelia sat alone in her corner of the table and started filling her plate with food slowly. Karin curiously looked over at the Slytherin's table to spy at Julius. He was chatting with a girl, apparently wholly unconcerned with the happenings on Gryffindor, or at last, that was what it looked like.

Ophelia was about to start eating, even alone in her small corner of the table, when someone threw a mashed potato at her.

"Get out of here, traitor!"

Minerva frowned from the teacher's table and was about to rise when Dumbledore held her arm and whispered something in her ear. Her frown deepened and she rested back on her seat.

This time it was a chicken wing. It flew towards her forehead and made a dry sound. She bit her lips, her hands went to massage her forehead and she started tearing up.

Before Kallen could stop him, her idiot brother, Ron, stood up and scowled at Ophelia.

"Go back to your dark friends in Slytherin, Black!" He said. "No one wants you here. Look at your brother, he is already making friends among the snakes."

Some voices agreed to him. Another piece of foot flew towards her. Soon more students gathered courage and pieces of food started raining over her. She was crying for real now.

Karin stood up to give her brother a beautiful slap on the face. But before Ron could do any more, Julius stood up.

The hall went silent again.

Kallen stopped in her tracks. She had a very bad feeling about this.

Julius walked silently towards them, a small scowl on his face. He was also carrying a goblet with pumpkin juice. The perfect impersonation of a pureblood supremacist. He stoped in front of his sister with an expression of disgust in his face.

"Pathetic." He said.

Karin's eyes widened. What?

His sister blinked her tears away, her eyes widening in confusion.

"You are pathetic, Ophelia." He said.

"Lu...lu?" his sister asked, in growing aprehension.

"A worthless crybaby like you isn't worthy of carrying the Black name."

_He stood in front of the Black Knights, Kallen was standing at his side. A dozen weapons were pointed at him and he laughed at them all. "Fools! You finally figured it out!" he chuckled "You finally figured that I've been using you all. You are nothing but pawns to me!"_

"Bastard..." Karin gnashed her teeth and closed her fists. If she had any doubt about it, it was gone now.

It was Lelouch right there.

"Hey..." someone in Gryffindor mumbled towards Lelouch. He ignored and continued his play.

"A Black in Gryphindor..." He shook his head in dejection. "Our ancestors must be squirming in their graves." Julius...no, Lelouch clicked his tongue and sipped from his drink. "As soon as I inherit the Black name I will throw you away like the trash you are. Consider yourself disowned from the family as of this moment."

_"Kallen, you were the most fun piece of all for me to play with." Tamaki shouted something in the background. Kallen was staring at Lelouch in horror. He chuckled. "So naive."_

"Lelouch, you fucking bastard..." she whispered under her breath. One of her brothers put his hand on her shoulder comfortingly.

"Hey, isn't she your sister?" another student from Gryffindor asked, uncertain.

Lelouch glanced at him, scowled and poured the rest of his drink over his sister's heartbroken face.

"And what of it?" he said.

Ophelia's grey eyes were wide in horror. He smirked evily at her.

"You are dead to me, Ophelia. Dead from the moment you were born."

_He opened his arms in a dramatic gesture. "That's right. This was all just a board for me to play on. Just a game to me." _

"Fucking liar." Kallen felt tears rolling out from her eyes even as she whispered these words. "Lelouch, you fucking _liar_."

The Gryffindor students started to stand up and glare at Lelouch. Even some students in other houses started scowling angrily at him.

"What?" he asked, his smiling daring anyone to oppose him "Do you have any problem with me?"

"Fucking snake! Go back to your den!" Someone said. Others started shouting almost immediatly. An older Gryffindor girl approached Ophelia from behind and started comforting her with a half-hug while glaring at Lelouch.

Lelouch laughed. "Make me."

Before anyone could respond, Karin was suddenly beside him, punching him in the jaw with such force he flew almost three feet.

The entirety of the Slytherin table stood up tensely. Before anything more could happen, a dry laugh resounded in the hall.

Lelouch stood up slowly as he laughed madly, it was a very unsettling scene. In front of him, Karin growled in anger.

"...You fucking bastard."

He cleaned the blood from his mouth and smirked. "Huh, bunch of idiots." He left and returned to the Slytherin table, where he was received with smiles and taps on the back.

...

AN: Lelouch being Lelouch.

AN2: Really guys, who didn't see this coming? This is Lelouch, for merlin's sake.

AN3: I'll try to make longer chapters, but no promises. I won't change the frequency though.


	13. Chapter 13 - Match

He sat back on his seat with the other Slytherins, beside a short-haired girl, and turned to watch his sister. She was soon surrounded by her fellow housemates. Some were helping her up. One of them already had a handkerchief in her hand and was carefully cleaning the pumpkin juice from Ophelia's face.

The juice thing had been a good idea. Her housemates wouldn't have helped her if she was still smeared by the food they threw themselves. Gryffindors are supposed to be prideful and dumb. It would be like admitting their own mistakes.

By throwing juice at her face, he washed away their abuse and gave them an excuse to help her clean up. By mentioning that the Blacks would be ashamed, he was secretly reinforcing the idea that she truly belonged in Gryffindor and by implying Gryffindor's inferiority to Slytherin he was making himself an enemy that they could unite to oppose.

Everything he did still had two upsides: First, of strengthening his own position in Slytherin, where he could properly create his power base if the need ever came, and second, of keeping Ophelia safely away from him.

She would hate him, but he was already pretty used to being hated.

By mentioning the Black family, he had also declared himself a purist and a dark-aligned wizard. The Hat's reaction to him favored this narrative as well. "Practically bred for it", it said.

He smirked. Oh, the irony.

Well... The board was set. He had already chosen the black side. It was time to gather the pieces.

...

Erik Turner, Slytherin's prefect, raised a goblet from where he was sitting and said "It is a pleasure to have Blacks in Slytherin once again. Welcome to our house, little snake." he nodded solemnly towards Lelouch.

"Thank you, Mister Prefect." Lelouch said. "I am greatly honored to have been accepted into this house. I plan to keep the tradition that was unfortunately discontinued by my father when he was sorted in...Gryffindor." He spat and raised his cup. "We Blacks belong in the house of the sly, among our..." He twisted his mouth upwards in a half-smile "Blood brothers..."

Erick smirked.

The Prefect turned back to chat with his yearmates and Lelouch turned to inspect the other Slytherin newcomers. In front of him, a blond-haired boy, flanked by two stereotypical thugs, glared at him. On their side right side, a blond girl enjoyed her food with refined grace. Beside her, another girl ate her food while covertly stealing glances at Lelouch.

At Lelouch's side of the table, a short-haired mousy girl scowled as she looked into her plate. Beside her, a boy gracefully ate his food.

Lelouch had already filed their names away, and he was slowly grasping the hierarchy of power between the first years.

Draco Malfoy, heir to the Malfoy family. It was a good thing Lelouch took that discarded journal with him when he visited the Diagon Alley to buy his school supplies. Draco's father was an important member of the Wizengamot, the legislative body of Wizarding Britain.

From the way Draco was looking at Lelouch, he considered himself the leader among the first years and had labeled Lelouch as a possible competitor for the position. He seemed to be searching for an excuse to start a fight with Lelouch in order to establish his position in the hierarchy.

Lelouch would either have to back down and look inoffensive, or he would have to prove his superiority and make Draco submit to him. Draco would soon be questioning his capabilities anyway.

Daphne Greengrass also seemed rather high in the pecking order. The way her friend Tracey interacted with her had just a smidge of deference. This society was highly patriarchal, so she probably wasn't as high in the hierarchy as Malfoy.

She noticed Lelouch glancing at her and turned to glare at him. Lelouch smiled inoffensively. She narrowed her eyes in suspicion and turned back to her plate.

Lelouch chuckled silently.

The Headmaster at the teacher's table stood up and clapped his hands. He bid words of welcome to the students and mentioned something about a forbidden corridor. After that, the students were directed to their houses.

A teacher appeared to guide them to the Slytherin dormitories in the castle dungeons. Lelouch followed the group while paying close attention to Slytherin's power hierarchy. Draco glared at him from his back while gnashing his teeth. His behavior was interesting. He probably didn't expect another heir from one of the sacred twenty to be entering Slytherin together with him this year, especially one from such a prestigious house. Were the Blacks older than the Malfoys? That was important information. How prestigious were the Blacks, really?

Lelouch certainly found it strange no one seemed to question his status as a half-blood. Did they not know? He doubted it. There was a greater chance that the Black name was just powerful enough to make most people ignore he wasn't a pureblood.

The procession stopped in front of a bare stretch of stone in the middle of the dungeons.

"Purity" said the morose teacher.

The wall opened to show a stone room lit by green lamps and filled with luxurious green seats and tables. Tapestries adorned the wall and a fireplace with green fire wavered in a corner. Its windows looked out into the depths of the lake. A chess table stood in the middle of the room.

"This is the common room." The teacher turned to the first years.

He droned on about the rules of the Slytherin house, 'Keep your discordances inside the house and show a united front.' etcetera. Nothing Lelouch hadn't learned in Britannia.

He left after finishing his explanations. The students were soon spreading around the room. The older ones took the better seats, next to the fireplace, closer to the torches, in the most comfortable seats. Other ones went directly into the dorms, tired from a long day. Not a very wise idea. This was the moment the entire hierarchy would be established for the duration of the school year, the moment in which each student would find their place on the board. Those not participating would be out of the game

This was a game Lelouch knew how to play. He was just waiting for the starting signal.

Lelouch approached the chessboard at the center of the room. It appeared a match was abandoned halfway in a hurry. Draco followed his movements from the corner of his eyes, and he was growing increasingly impatient. Good.

The pieces were very well crafted. The black side was made with opal-white glass. The black one was made of jade, green like a snake. The black king was checked. Lelouch sat on the black side. More than one eye in the room followed him.

He took the black king, moved it, crossed his fingers under his chin and waited.

Seconds passed by with no one approaching him.

He wasn't surprised when someone sat on the other side, though.

"Knight to F-5", Daphne said.

The next scene made Lelouch blink in surprise. The knight literally rode his horse all the way to Lelouch's pawn, took a fucking axe from his back and decapitated it.

"Wizard chess." she explained, looking at him in the eyes with a slight smirk. "You don't need to move the pieces manually."

He almost clicked his tongue.

Baiting a student to play against him and wining would inevitably provoke Malfoy into a game against him. He could see the need the boy had for approval, the need to prove his worth. If chess was as important in this society as it was in Britannia, a victory against Malfoy was all Lelouch would need to establish his dominance.

His ignorance about the wizarding world was his downfall. The girl in front of him basically showed everyone in the room how little he knew about their world with just three little words. She was asking. _"Are you really one of us?"_

How would he salvage that? He glanced at the game again and smiled confidently, perfect. Daphne frowned at him and lightly tilted her head.

Lelouch smiled at her and raised his right hand showing three fingers. She blinked in surprise. He made sure the other students watching the match saw it. Daphne narrowed her eyes, understanding what he was implying.

"Tower to F-7" He said.

"Priest to C-5" She said, furrowing her eyebrows in concentration

"Queen to E-5"

"Pawn to D-6"

"Knight to G6" Lelouch said and relaxed on his seat. "Checkmate."

She looked at him in surprise, then she looked back at the game and returned to look at him. He could see his other housemates glancing at his game in awe.

"Impressive." She admitted.

He looked at Draco from the corner of his eyes. Was it jealously he was seeing in his expression? Was he jealous of Lelouch because had the attention of the girl, or because he won the match? was he that thirsty for approval?

Now was the perfect moment to dangle the bait.

"Thank you." Lelouch smiled charmingly. "Another game? This time from the start? This wasn't even a proper match."

"I will play with you, Black" Draco interrupted, approaching impatiently.

Daphne nodded at Lelouch and rose from the seat to give place for Draco. He sat in front of Lelouch and, magically, the pieces reorganized themselves on the board. The broken ones rose like liquid from the material of the board and slowly took their forms again.

Lelouch held his hand for Malfoy to shake. No reason not to be courteous. "Draco Malfoy...I have heard good things about your family." he smiled.

Draco sniffed, ignored him and moved his pawn.

The boy wasn't that bright, was he? The entire room was covertly watching their byplay. His snobbish behavior showed an arrogant disposition that would only help isolate him. People follow those who recognize their value. People liked to know they were appreciated. No one would follow a self-centered brat who thinks himself above one of the most traditional houses of the wizarding world.

Lelouch still hasn't risen his own shares yet, but he certainly lowered Malfoy's. He could see the frown at Malfoys behavior in some of their housemates. Great, this game was already providing Lelouch with profit.

"Check." Lelouch said. The boy blinked end turned to stare at the board. Indeed, not very bright. Draco scowled and moved another piece.

In two more moves, Lelouch claimed Checkmate.

Draco scowled, looked at the board and glared at Lelouch.

"Don't think too highly of yourself, half-blood." he snarled and rose up from his seat to stare down at Lelouch with an arrogant expression. The chatter on the room diminished a little. Everyone wanted to see what happened next.

Draco sneered "It doesn't matter how good you are in strategy if your magic is tainted by muggle blood." he said. One of his thugs sneered and repeated it. "Yeah...It doesn't matter how good you are."

So, now he turned to question Leluch's skill in magic. A Black child was supposed to be skilled after all. It was a good maneuver for one stupid such as him.

He knew their wands were locked in their trunks at their dorms. He also knew that Lelouch was a complete novice at magic. The purebloods probably started teaching their children magic from a young age, Draco was sure to have some meager skill at it. He shed doubts over Lelouch's magical ability but gave Lelouch no way to prove him wrong.

His reaction was still under Lelouch's window of prediction though. Lelouch rose from his seat with a scowl and met his eyes. "So, you doubt my magical prowess?"

"Halfbloods are just a little less dumb than mudbloods." He snarled. He pointed at Lelouch and shouted. "You are not a real Black! You have no right over that name! It is I who should be inheriting it!"

Lelouch managed to keep his surprise from almost showing on his face. Was Draco in line to inherit the Black title? Damn, this would complicate things. It would be far harder to get Draco to follow him like that. He would have to revise his plans.

"I see..." Lelouch smirked. "I just need to show I am a real Black then, right?"

He needed a way out of this situation. The "need" was here. The only thing left was the "emotion".

Lelouch's face distorted in a furious grin. Draco frowned and took a step back in hesitation.

_"And what of it?"_

He would be using his father again.

_"You are dead to me, Lelouch."_

Lelouch raised his right hand towards the chessboard, with his middle finger touching his thumb.

_"Who was it that gave you the clothes you wear? the food you eat? the roof over your head?" Charles zi Britannia said. "It was I. Without me, you are nothing, Lelouch."_

He snapped his fingers.

In the first three seconds, nothing happened. Draco blinked in confusion. In the fourth second, the chessboard and the table it was standing on started to darken and melt while releasing putrid black fumes. Draco shrieked, some students stood up in surprise. Perfect. Lelouch wasn't expecting something this dramatic to come out of his accidental magic, but it fit like a glove in his plan.

At the place where once stood a table and a chessboard, a black smudge bubbled with what seemed to be faces in anguish wavering inside it, moving ever so slightly.

The entire Slytherin room stared at him in horror.

He chuckled. "So, do you think I am a Black now?"

...

Soon after his confrontation with Malfoy ended, the black mass on the floor disappeared when no one was looking. According to Daphne, it was the work of a strange race of creatures called house-elves. Not long after that, the other students started trickling into their dorms as the night deepened.

Lelouch shared a room with the other first-year boys. The room was enormous. It was clearly made for more than twenty children, but there were only four of them here. Aside from the thugs that followed Malfoy, there was also a European boy named Blaze Zabini.

Lelouch claimed a bed next to the window, where he could see the fishes dancing under the moonlight. He opened the curtains of his bed and unlocked his trunk to reveal Nunnally's painting.

Nunnally blinked as if she was just awaking from a dream, her eyes opened in surprise when she noticed Lelouch. "Brothe..."

Lelouch put a finger in his mouth to signal Nunnally to make silence. He didn't want to raise questions.

"We are in Hogwarts now," he said. "It is night, I don't want to call attention to us."

He moved to put her just over the wall, over the headboard where she would watch over his sleep.

He chatted quietly with his sister until sleep claimed him.


	14. Chapter 14 - Green

Karin sighed in irritation while she fixed her pillow

On the bed at her side, Lelouch's sister sniffled into a plushie. She had been crying since that commotion in the hall. What was Lelouch even thinking? Saying something like that to an eleven-year-old girl. The socially-stunted idiot...

He was still an arrogant bastard with a strange penchant for making people hate him. He didn't change much... Oh, how good it felt to feel her first smashing on his smirking face...

Should she reveal herself to him?

...Naw

She smiled as she hugged her pillow. It was good to be the one in control of the situation for once. She would let him stew a little. Kallen chuckled. Maybe throw a clue here and there just to mess with him?

She couldn't contain the smile spilling on her face. That was Lelouch, alright? This time, she would not let another Requiem happen, she wouldn't let it happen even if she had to break every one of his limbs.

She cleaned the water from her eyes and turned to the side to sleep.

...

...

...

Ophelia was tossing and turning in her sleep.

_"So, where do you want to go first, Julius?" Miss Alice asked while laughing at Julius' expression._

_He was scowling, like always. Did he not like amusement parks? It all looked so cool...So many lights and sounds._

_Sometimes her brother was just weird._

_"I know where I want to go," he said. "I want to go home."_

_Miss Alice rolled her eyes. "Of course not, Julius. We just arrived. The other kids have been waiting for this for the entire weekend."_

_"The other kids can have their fun, just let me have my peace."_

_"No!" Ophelia said, taking her brother's arm. "You are going to play with us!" she grinned. "He will stay, right? Miss Alice?"_

_Alice patted her head. "Of course. We will not let him escape this time."_

_He grunted, sighed and smiled gently at her. "All right, you win Ophelia." Her brother said and messed up her hair. "Just for tonight."_

_She gave him a wide, wide smile._

...

Ophelia blinked her eyes and slowly rose from the bed. She rubbed her eyes and...

And suddenly, everything that happened the day before came back to her like a wave. Her pupils started to tramble and she was gasping for air.

_"You are Pathetic, Ophelia."_

She hugged herself and bit her lips. That wasn't her brother! That couldn't be her brother!

_"A worthless crybaby like you isn't worthy of carrying the Black name." _

She put a pillow on her face and started to cry softly on it. Her brother...he wasn't like that! He was a little distant, a little closed off, but he was warm and loving! He cared about her and the other kids in the orphanage. He is not...

_"Ah come on, Karin! You can't be serious." He stood up and pointed accusingly at her brother "They are evil! All of them!"_

He is not evil...

Right?

"Good morning!"

Her roommate called her. It was that redhead girl from the train, Karin Weasley. Ophelia stared at her blankly. Why did she look so happy? Ophelia scowled. She didn't find enough strength to answer the girl. She just silently rose from her bed and went to wash her face in the bathroom.

She heard a sigh behind her. "He was lying, you know?"

"What?" Ophelia asked.

The girl smiled wistfully as she took a towel and looked at her. "Your brother, he was lying to you, not a word he said yesterday was true."

Ophelia bit her lips, angrily. "What do you know?" she whispered.

Deep inside, she had always doubted if Julius really cared for her. Recently their relationship was getting worse and worse.

Ever since she found the painting.

The girl in the painting. Who was she? Why did Julius look at her like that? Why did she look so much like Julius?

She shook her head. That wasn't important right now.

Karin put her hand on her should in reassurance. "I've...dealt with people like him before." She said, her eyes seemed to be staring at nothing.

"Your brother doesn't hate you, Ophelia." Karin looked at the ceiling and sighed. "He hates _himself._"

What? That made even less sense.

Was Karin trying to cheer her? Because if she was, she was failing badly. Ophelia bit her lips and felt tears gathering up in her eyes again as she remembered Julius' expression of revulsion. He couldn't have faked that.

Karin sat beside her, and smiled bitterly.

"Deep down, he hates himself." she said "He probably doesn't even know it. And because of that self-hatred, he can't help but feel uncomfortable when other people admire him. When people _love_ him. He can't understand it."

She paused.

"And so, he does the most obvious thing. He forces everyone else to feel for him what he feels for himself. He makes everyone else hate him. And he likes it. He feels comfortable and safe under their hatred." She chuckled. "Your brother isn't 'evil', Ophy." Karin held Ophelia's hand in a reassuring gesture and smiled at her "He is just an idiot."

...

Somehow, their talk made her feel just a little better. She didn't agree with Karin though. Her brother hating himself? He has always been perfect in everything he did. What reason would he have? What was there to hate about himself?

On her way out of the dorms, many of her housemates asked her how she was feeling. Some even apologized for the day before. When Ron approached, Karin glared at her brother until he did so.

"Sorry." The boy beside Ron said as well. He was apologizing too? Why?

"I thought you were like...well...your brother..." Harry explained, fidgeting. "...And your father."

Her father... Ophelia bit her lips. Minerva had told her about him. She had read about him as well. His name was in her history book, after all. Her father was a death eater, an evil man who killed other people for fun. He betrayed the location of Harry's parents to he-who-must-not-be-named. Was that why her brother was like that? Was it something about their family that made them bad?

"I'm..." she clenched her hands and glared at him.

"I'm not like them..."

...

On the next day, what Lelouch feared had come to pass.

He was hoping Malfoy would follow him after his little show in the common room. That's what would have happened, were him not also a contender for the Black name. Joining Lelouch in an inferior position would mean the same as giving up his claim on the Black title. Even if Malfoy wanted to join him, Lelouch doubted his father would allow it. It was a very complicated situation.

Instead of following Lelouch, Draco Malfoy closed himself off in his own little group with Crabble, Goyle and Pansy. At the same time, Daphne, Tracey, and Millicent started gravitating towards Lelouch. Both Tracey and Millicent were half-bloods, and considering what Malfoy said yesterday during their match, Lelouch could understand why. He smirked.

_"Halfbloods are just a little less dumb than mudbloods". _Draco had said. Lelouch was still profiting from that match.

With that, the first year Slytherins became split into two factions.

The Zabini boy still hadn't decided what side he would join and pretended to not see anything that was going on around him. He was attentively taking notice of everything, though. Preparing to join the side that proved better.

Fool. On one hand, he would avoid joining the losing faction, but on the other, the leader of the winning one would never trust him completely. Lelouch surely wouldn't.

...

Lelouch walked through the corridors in the direction of the Potions' Class. Daphne walked beside him, with Millicent and Tracey following just behind her.

He opened up the door, entered and smirked arrogantly at the Gryffindors the were already there. His sister glanced at him, bit her lips, sniffled and looked downwards. The Weasley girl that was sitting just beside his sister held her hand and glared at Lelouch.

Good. She was already making friends. His smile turned gentle for a second, before turning back into a malicious smirk almost immediately.

She would need friends. It was a good thing she was sorted in Gryffindor. They had an overall good reputation and were quite easy for Lelouch to manipulate.

He turned to face the other students. The Weasley boy was looking at him with quite a lot of anger. Lelouch chuckled. That one reminded him of Tamaki, too much heart and too little brain. He would have fun with him, he could already see it.

The Potter boy was looking at him with anger, as well. It was different from the Weasley's, though. His anger had no heat, it was just a step away from hatred. Lelouch could understand it. It was about Sirius, right? He probably heard from someone that Lelouch's father was the reason he was an orphan and grew up in an abusive home. With the lack of anyone else for him to blame, he blamed Lelouch by association. He couldn't very well blame Ophelia after the show Lelouch gave them in the hall.

Was he even aware that the Headmaster knew about it? Lelouch frowned. What happened to the boy after Dumbledore got involved in that mess? Did he return the boy to his abusive relatives?

What was Dumbledore's game?

Next to them was a pudgy boy, Neville Longbottom. He was staring at Lelouch with an expression so filled with terror it seemed he would faint at any moment. Lelouch grinned at him and he went white as a ghost. Strange reaction. Did he have a history with the Blacks?

The Teacher opened the door entered with a sweep of his cape.

Lelouch sighed and took a seat in front of the class. Greengrass sat beside him with Millicent and Tracey sitting beside her. The class was taken in pairs. He looked at Daphne and raised his eyebrow. She nodded back at him.

They started working on a draught-of-the-dead potion. It seemed useful for quite a wide range of situations. How long did those potions last until they lost their effects? Maybe it would be a good idea to prepare a stash of assorted potions at some point.

During the entire class, the teacher looked at him with a very strange look. It was like he wasn't sure if he should hate or appreciate Lelouch. It was like the very idea of a 'Julius Black' was abnormal and he was trying to accept it. Lelouch decided to ignore it. It was stupid to try reading into every strange reaction he created. He would never stop analyzing them.

The teacher seemed to have a special hate for the Potter, though. Strange. Maybe it was something to do with his family? Some kind of quarrel that is continuously passed down in their families, like an heirloom? Britannian nobles could keep grudges for centuries as well.

The boy was inconsequential, though. The only thing he had going for him was his fame and his money.

Lelouch clicked his tongue. Money...Lelouch would have to take care of that soon, he already had some ideas. He couldn't keep depending on that headmaster with dubious moral standards to support him.

Then again, who was Lelouch to talk about morals?

He snorted. He just hoped the man didn't start bothering his sister by association. She was already sitting next to the Potter, beside the Weasleys.

He finished his potion with perfection. The man awarded Slytherin with five points and they left for the next class.

..

Their next class was with the Ravenclaws, with a "Quirrel" character. Hermione was glaring at Lelouch from the other side of the class with undisguised anger. He grinned at her, daring her to do something. She was probably blaming herself for not standing up to help his sister when she was being bullied by Gryffindor. Lelouch shook his head and turned back to the class.

The teacher was a nervous disaster. A messed up ball with anxiety ready to explode. Lelouch smirked. All right, the guy was almost perfect in his impersonation, but he made some very obvious mistakes.

The first was that, although he stuttered and stumbled over his own feet like an idiot, he kept eye contact with everyone he spoke with. Anxious people don't do that. Nervous people don't face people in the eye like he was doing.

The other mistake he made was that his stuttering felt very... stereotypical. As if he was trying to emulate a character he had seen on television. Lelouch had seen people stuttering before, It wasn't like the man was doing. Real stutterers spoke two and three entire words before starting everything again. Some times they spoke entire sentences without stuttering. Quirrell was way too consistent.

As if he was playing a character.

Lelouch snorted. In Britannia, he would be seen through in seconds. Even Nunna would see it, and she was blind.

Whatever game he was playing, though, it had nothing to do with Lelouch.

"S-So mister B-Black" the teacher turned towards Lelouch, smiling nervously, but staring at him in a way completely unlike an anxious person. "C-Can y-you answer W-who w-was the worst D-dark L-lord of this C-century?"

Lelouch turned his attention to the teacher. He had read about it in his history book. Lelouch smiled and answered. "It was Grindelwald, rig..." he stopped as he felt some dirt enter his left eye. He rubbed it off and continued. "It was Grindelwald, right?" he said.

Quirrell was frowning at him with a strange expression. He went silent and just stood there looking at Lelouch. Seconds passed by without him responding.

"Teacher?" Hermione called him, frowning at his reaction.

Quirrel just stood there, just staring at Lelouch like a statue. Curious

Draco snorted and laughed. "I think he finally broke."

Suddenly, Quirrel wobbled and fell to the side. He grabbed the table beside him and slowly recovered his balance.

"T-Teacher," Someone called out. "Are you feeling well?"

Quirrel blinked and looked back at Lelouch, There was a sheen of sweat on his face and there was a touch of anger and wariness in his expression.

"Indeed, Mr. Black," he said with uncharacteristic seriousness, as if he was forcing down a scowl. "One point to Slytherin".

Quirrell shook his head and continued his class as if nothing had happened.

Strange, _strange_ man.

...

Quirrel walked through the corridors in haste, his clothes flapping behind him. His heart still beating like a drum.

He stopped at a bathroom and splashed his face with water, trying to make sense of what he had seen.

He took a breath and raised his head to look at his own expression. "By Merlin...What the fuck was that?"

_"Leave. You are not welcome here."_

The green-haired woman with strange clothes and a knowing smile.

The _eldritch_ planet hanging above and below him.

_"Immortality? Such a small man..." she mocked._

He took another breath, but his heart was beating just the same.

"Just, what the fuck...what the fuck?"

...

AN: Sorry for the wait. RL things.


	15. Chapter 15 - Retainer

Kallen glanced at Lelouch, who stood right beside her. He was chatting with the Greengrass heir as if they were old friends. Two other girls stood there, paying attention to their conversation. The taller one had a face like a stone and the shorter girl giggled now and then from something said in their conversation. Kallen scowled. Damn womanizing bastard. Such a punchable face.

They were attending the flying class. Kallen was already quite good at it. The twins had let her use their brooms before, in secret of course. Molly wouldn't let her even approach one if she could. It wasn't that difficult though. Not that different from piloting a Knightmare, after all. Her brothers exaggerated, saying she was as good as their seeker. She rolled her eyes.

Ophelia stood next to Ron, the Longbottom, and the Potter boy. It was curious that the daughter of Sirius Black would befriend the son of the man he killed.

Professor Sinistra turned towards the students and said. "Now, you need to call the broom towards you." she gestures. "You need to chant 'up' for it to rise."

Kallen smirked. She gestured with her hand and didn't even need to chant. The broom obeyed and went to her hand.

The teacher blinked and nodded approvingly. "Good one, miss Karin."

Kallen smiled and shifted her eyes to look at Lelouch.

He was still calling for his broom to move. Lelouch had an irritated expression on his face. As if he was dealing with a specially stubborn subordinate. Oh, this is just precious. This class must be like PE to him.

She smirked. It was always refreshing to see him failing at something.

Lelouch was still chanting when, suddenly, his broom jumped from the ground and hit him on the face.

Kallen couldn't hold back her laugh. She chuckled loudly. Some students noticed it as well and sneered at Lelouch. Draco was grinning idiotically some distance away as if it was some kind of victory for him, what an idiot.

Lelouch massaged his forehead, turned to look at her with a scowl and snorted. "Do you think this is funny, Weasley?"

She grinned at him. "Oh, I find it just hilarious, Black..."

A second after that, Ron did the same thing.

Lelouch turned to her and smirked. "Is it still hilarious now, Weasley?"

She gritted her teeth and smiled angrily "Not as funny as your face, Black" she said.

Lelouch frowned a little while staring at her face, as if trying to decipher something from her expression, before snorting and turning back to his broom. Kallen rolled her eyes and sat on her broom, waiting for the teacher to give them the signal to take flight.

Before she did though, Neville's broom went out of control and slowly levitated him into the sky before going fully crazy and throwing him in the walls of the castle like a basketball. Malfoy was laughing with his goons, and Lelouch just watched it all with the expression of someone who wanted to be anywhere but here.

Neville screamed again, his broom did an arc in the air and he started flying in low altitude, fast like an arrow.

Towards the other students.

Directly towards Lelouch.

Kallen didn't think. She lowered her center of gravity, took her wand from inside her robes and moved as fast as she could.

In a fraction of a second, she was in front of Lelouch.

"Protego!". She shouted.

Neville's broom crashed and splintered in her shield like a toothpick, throwing him a few meters away from the impact.

Everything went silent.

Kallen stood, in the middle of the field, staring in surprise at the wand on her hand. It seemed that even after a decade, the instinct was still deeply ingrained into her.

She hadn't been the Captain of the Zero Squad for nothing.

Kallen released the breath she didn't even notice she was holding and turned back to look at Lelouch.

He had fallen on his back and was staring at her with a mix of shock and confusion. The entire class had gone silent. The teacher was just staring at her as if she was an alien. Ron's broom slipped from his hand and his mouth opened and closed like a fish.

Tsk, she didn't want to catch so much attention. Damn that Lelouch, this was his fault.

She smirked at him. "I guess you owe me one now, Black."

He made an expression of someone who ate something bad and stood up.

"Indeed. So it seems, Weasley...so it seems," he said, before turning and returning to his housemates.

Kallen scowled. It would be bad if this went up to Dumbledore. Protego was not a first-year spell and she didn't want any problems with the Ministry. Then again, the law about underage magic was there only to fuck with muggleborns, it was recurrently broken by the pureblood families.

It was a good thing when Harry Potter soon outshined her, catching Neville's Rememberall right in front of Minerva, and becoming Gryffindor's youngest seeker.

...

Lelouch arrived at the transfiguration class with a scowl, with the rest of the Slytherins following just behind him. He looked at the girl standing some distance away from him. Karin Weasley.

Her reactions to him were...strange.

She didn't seem to find him scary, evil, or like a younger Sirius Black for that matter. When she said she found him funny, she wasn't lying. He wasn't trying to be funny. If anything, he was channeling his inner Charles zi Britannia.

That wasn't the most disconcerting thing, though

The readiness in which she appeared in front of him to stop the Longbottom? That was haunting him still. It was abnormal from every angle he tried to see it. Was she one of those idiots with a "saving people thing?", some good samaritan who has no attachment to her own life and is always ready to sacrifice herself for others?

No, it didn't feel like it.

Maybe she wanted to have him owe her a life debt? It was one of those weird particularities about the wizarding world. Failing to recognize a life debt was a faux pas.

It's a possibility. Even though he probably wouldn't have died from it, he would still have to recognize her intentions. Having a life debt so early in the game was bad. Lelouch might be insignificant now, but there was no doubt he was going to grow in the hierarchy and the pureblood circles. Sooner or later he would inherit the Black fortune. Would she bank it just to remind him sometime later?

It didn't feel like it... It wasn't about Lelouch owing her.

It was just about him.

Why?!

He clicked his tongue and spied on her from the corner of his eyes. She was telling something to Hermione and Ophelia. Hermione was nodding enthusiastically while Ophelia seemed to be paying great attention.

He scowled. Lelouch owed the girl now, but he didn't even know her agenda. It is always bad when you owe someone a favor, but doesn't know their plans. That's Britannia's basic court politics - always know what the other party wants.

Did she have designs for him? Is that why she saved him? Maybe she was behind the broom's loss of control as well and directed the entire scenario just to get him to owe her?

No, that's just absurd. He was letting his paranoia out of control.

Lelouch sighed. He has more important worries right now.

...

It was a cat.

A black cat.

And it looked disturbingly similar to...Arthur.

Lelouch glared at it. The vile creature was sitting on the teacher's table as it was his own. As if it had the right to do so. The nerve of it...

It licked it's own pawn and turned his face to stare at Lelouch. Lelouch scowled.

"Disgusting creature," he said.

Then, suddenly, the cat turned into Minerva, who was looking sternly at Lelouch. His mouth opened in awed surprise.

"Minus ten points from Slytherin for the language, Mr. Black"

..

They were back in the common room. Lelouch and his group sat in a corner of the room. There were two sofas here. Lelouch and his group took it right after they arrived. None of the older boys tried to dispute it with him. They were still cowered by his earlier show. Apparently, "wandless magic" was a thing, and it was supposed to be very, very hard. What he did wasn't wandless magic, but it was similar enough no one noticed a difference. When they saw him, they just respectfully nodded and went to their business.

"So, how do you know the Weasley girl?" Tracey asked him. He was sitting on a sofa beside Daphne. In another one sat Millicent and Tracey.

Lelouch blinked. "I don't think I can say I know her. We met on the train when her brother accused me of being an evil Black." he snorted.

She smiled secretly. "Well, for someone you met not so long ago she acts with too much familiarity."

Lelouch frowned.

"But then again, she is a Weasley..." Tracey rolled her eyes.

Lelouch leaned to the side and supported his head with his hand, with his elbow on the seat's arm. "Oh, is there something about her family?"

"They are not well known for their discretion." It was Daphne who answered. "Her father is a very eccentric man who works for the ministry. He is obsessed with anything involving muggles."

Tracey interjected. " And her mother is a meddlesome woman who can't keep herself out of other people's business." she giggled.

Daphne said "Her brothers..." Daphne continued. "You will probably have the misfortune to meet them soon. The girl herself is a mashed-up ball of violence and anger with not an ounce of sophistication. No offense intended, Millicent"

The girl just grunted.

Hmm, like Kallen then. Lelouch chuckled.

Did Greengrass had a bone to pick with the Weasleys? Anyway, this was a good opportunity for him to gather some information and to clear some questions. Daphne was a pureblood from one of the sacred twenty-eight. That made her an important source of information for Lelouch. He needed to get closer to her to wholly consolidate his footing in Slytherin, it would pay well in the long run. For now, though, he would keep her talking, people liked to be heard, after all.

"And what of the Longbottom?" he asked. "His reactions to me are interesting, to say the last."

She seemed a little surprised. "You mean you don't know?" she asked. What she proceeded to tell him was as informative as it was disturbing. It seemed his new father wasn't the only black sheep of the Black family. Bellatrix Lestrange...did they name themselves after stars? How arrogant.

"That explains some things." he drawled. It was time to show just a little weakness. Give the Greengrass an opening to offer him political support "It also puts me in an even worse situation..."

Daphne's eyes shined with recognition. Lelouch smirked. It was always satisfying to chat with an intelligent person. "How so?" she asked.

"I am basically the son and the nephew of the worst followers Voldmort has ever had." She flinched. Tracey's eyes widened. Lelouch rolled his eyes. "...and the heir to the Black family, but I have no access to my family's fortune, and no family friend to rely upon. I am basically on my own, with every disadvantage of being a son of the twenty-eight and none of the privileges. My sister is worthless...my father is rotting in prison" This time, it was Daphne who rolled her eyes. Lelouch frowned. "So, my position is very fragile right now."

Daphne smirked. "You certainly don't act like it."

Lelouch smiled in return. "One should only show their weakness when it fits their plans."

"Indeed..." Daphne nodded thoughtfully. "Quite a wise quote."

Lelouch smiled but scowled internally. She didn't take the bait. Lelouch wasn't surprised, though. He had nothing of worth with himself. He still hadn't proved the potential value in helping him. The Greengrass family wouldn't ally with him if he had nothing to offer.

"So, what do you think about our teachers?" Lelouch continued. "I found the potion's class very interesting."

Daphne nodded. "Snape is a good teacher for Slytherin. He always gives more points to the students of Slytherin. I don't know why, but Dumbledore lets him get away with it. He is our head-of-house, so we should try to be on good terms with him."

Lelouch nodded. "What about Quirrell?" He said. "I don't think that man is fit to be teaching. Especially a class like defense from the dark arts. Too man things could go wrong."

Daphne shrugged. "They say there's a curse in the Defense from the dark art position." She answered. "For the last ten years, no teacher stood in that position for more than a year, every year the teacher changes. The pool of defense from dark arts teachers must be dwindling here in Britain."

Lelouch nodded and kept them talking. He gathered more information than he thought he would. Daphne was probably sounding him to see if it would be interesting for her family to look for a closer relationship with Lelouch. It was still too early for her to tell though. There's a good chance she was relaying ever chat she had with him to her parents and she would only compromise her family when her father gave her his "ok".

Well. They should hurry. Lelouch wouldn't stay powerless for much longer.

...

Lelouch returned to the dorm earlier then Malfoy's group. He opened the curtains of his bed to greet Nunnally, just to be stopped by a very, very strange scene.

In the middle of the portrait, instead of Just Nunnally in her wheelchair, there was a table with sweets and tea. A maid stood up sternly behind Nunnally with a food cart beside her. She glared at Lelouch.

In front of Nunnally, across the table, an older man, donning a bulky plate armor, sipped from a fuming cup of tea and stared at Nunnally with a strange devotion.

What in Britannia?

"Brother!" she smiled and waved her hand at him. The knight noticed him. Stood up, smiled and bowed. "Milord, it is an honor to finally meet you." he said. "My Princess told me a lot of great things about you, it will be an honor to serve the blood of the old kings once more."

What the...

Nunnally clapped her hands with a smile. "Onii-san, let me introduce you to Sir Cadogan, the Brave, a Knight of the Round from the times of Camelot!"

Lelouch lowered his head and massaged his temples. It would be one of those days right? Right? One of those horrible days...Damn it!

Lelouch parsed his mouth "Sir Cadogan..." Lelouch drawled. "I'd like to think of myself as pretty knowledgeable about Arturian legends, it was a huge part of Britannian culture, after all," he said. "Tell me then, why have I never heard about you before?"

The man smiled wistfully. "I am pretty sure the only wizard whose name wasn't erased from the muggle legends after the statute of secrecy was out was old man Merlin himself."

Nunnally snapped her fingers. "And Morgana"

"Oh, that's right, Morgan La Fey, and Mordred as well." he scowled and spat on the ground "I still don't know why they let the bastard be remembered. Thanks to it, his name still pollutes the air of the world"

Lelouch blinked and shook his head. "You were a knight and a wizard? Was that even allowed?"

The man smiled proudly. "But of course." He hit his chest, making a clanking sound "I am no weakling, your majesty. If you wish I can show you my skills. Do you want to see me defeat a wyvern? They are terrible beasts."

Lelouch felt a headache coming up.

"I see..." He said. "I just found it...unusual...I did not mean to doubt your skills, sir Cadogan."

The man preened. "No offense taken milord."

Lelouch blinked. Wait...this...

"Nunnally, how did he manage to enter your portrait?" Lelouch said, hurriedly.

She seemed surprised. "You didn't know it when you brought me here, Nii-san?" she asked. "Every portrait can visit each other once inside the castle. I don't really understand how it works, I just know it does."

The knight nodded. "Indeed...the magic of Hogwarts is impressive. The founders were very powerful. It is a shame there are no portraits of them for me to challenge"

Lelouch laughed internally. "Sir Cadogan, earlier, you said you would be honored to serve me and my sister Nunnally? Can you explain?"

The man stood ramrod straight. "It would be my greatest honor if I were allowed to serve the bloodline of Aldwin once more, My king."

Perfect.

Lelouch nodded with a smile. "Very well. I would be honored to have such skilled knight in my retinue. I hope you will serve the vi Britannians in death as well as you served your king in life."

The man smiled widely. He knelt in the ground and shouted. "I am at your orders, Milord!"

"Thank you, Sir Cadogan," Lelouch said, as he took an empty scroll from his trunk and prepared a pen. "I believe I already have a job for you."

...

AN: Indeed, sir Cadogan is a real character in HP, he really was a Knight of the Round, and he really was a wizard. It's amazing how some things just fit.

AN(2): Sorry for the wait again. I am very busy these days, will be for at least two months.


	16. Chapter 16 - Lelouch Vi Britannia

At the end of the first week, the teachers met to share their impressions on their students. Dumbledore was happy with the way Harry Potter turned out. It was a good thing he checked up on him from time to time. Otherwise, the stupid girl at the orphanage would have unmade his entire planning. The boy was fearful of new people and thirsty for attention and validation. A small praise here and there was all Dumbledore would need to do to have the boy's loyalty for life.

While the teachers were reviewing their notes, Dumbledore opened a folder, read the name on it and said. "So, let's continue. Ophelia Black, what do you think of her."

Minerva shook her head regretfully. "You should have let me stop the boy, Dumbledore," she said. "That situation at the dinner...the girl is very shocked. One of my prefects told me the girl cries herself to sleep. She showed no excitement during the class and just mechanically followed what she was told her to do. Her Ravenclaw friend tried to get her to participate, but even still..."

Interesting. Could he use that? Dumbledore didn't like the idea of turning siblings against each other, but the current situation in Britain was worrisome enough for him to put some reservations aside. He scowled and glanced at Quirrell. The teacher returned him a tremulous smile. Did Voldemort know that dumbledore knew?

Probably.

Last-day application for the position of DADA professor? Just after Albus brought the philosopher's stone inside Hogwarts? Dumbledore wasn't an idiot. Voldemort wasn't one as well.

It was quite possible they were playing an infinite game of "I know that you know that I know".

He put that line of thinking aside for the moment and concentrated on the problem at hand. There was a new piece on the board. Julius Black. He was clearly dark, and a purist to a boot, even though he was halfblood.

Just like Voldemort.

Was it possible that he was another of Voldemort's soul anchors? Dumbledore immediately discarded that possibility.

Yes, there were a lot of parallels, but their mannerisms were very different. The boy was a lot more...natural than Tom. Where Tom tried to force an elegance he didn't naturally have, in Julius Black, it all came naturally. Everything he did had a nobility, a grace that Tom could only envy. Very strange, considering the circumstances of his childhood. Very worrisome. A muggleborn orphan with the polished grace of a pureblood? Such a thing didn't exist. There was something strange going on with the boy.

Dumbledore wouldn't let another dark lord be born while he lived. The boy would have to go and his sister would, inevitably, become the Black heir. He should start bringing her towards the light as soon as possible.

She was already in Gryffindor. He could push her towards Harry Potter's faction, toward's _his own_ faction. The Weasley and the Longbottom boy have already started gravitating towards him. Adding the Black girl to his side would only strengthen Dumbledore's political power in the long run as well. After that, he would turn Harry Potter against Julius Black. The boy was already deep into the dark, it wouldn't be hard to find a reason to throw him in Azkaban.

There was still the "Malfoy" and the "Sirius" problems. He couldn't allow an alliance between the Blacks and the Malfoys to be formed. The Black boy was still just an arrogant brat who thought his family made him all-powerful, but Lucius Malfoy... There was a reason Albus was never able to put him in Azkaban. The man was a very skilled politician and slimy as an eel. Were it not for him, the light would have already shined throughout the Wizarding Britain.

He would have to keep them from meeting at all costs. Malfoy would be able to leverage the Black name better than anyone else. He hoped their dispute for the Black name would keep them from joining forces.

And Sirius...Sirius was a loose end. It was irritating that after ten years in Azkaban he was still living and breathing. It was a fortunate turn of events that saw him charged with the killing of the muggles. Thanks to that Dumbledore could mold Harry Potter's without his interference.

The meeting went on with Dumbledore mostly nodding throughout it. Until he arrived at the boy's name.

"Julius Black."

Minerva pursed her mouth in disgust. Most teachers went silent. His little show didn't give him any friends amongst them.

"He reminds me of Bellatrix," said Minerva. The other teachers turned to stare at her. "Before she went insane she was just like him. Composed, observing, and refined. She could easily be confused with a princess, going by her mannerisms."

Dumbledore frowned. Arcturus Black was like that as well.

Snape nodded. "I see no Halfblood when I look at him."

Dumbledore nodded and turned to another professor. "Quirrell, what do you think of him?"

Quirrell blinked in false nervousness. "He-He is Q-Quite skilled, I- I think?"

"Indeed," Flitwick said. "Though most knowledge he showed in my class was purely theoretical. I believe he might have memorized the entire first-year material. He was good in the practical applications, but not enough to be noted above the rest of the class. The Weasley though..." he blinked in amazement. "That was impressive."

Oh. Dumbledore smiled, those were good news. "So, you think little Ron will follow the steps of his older brother?"

Flitwick frowned and shook his head in realization. "No, not the boy," he said. "I am talking about the girl."

Minerva raised her eyebrows.

"She will be a dueling monster," he explained. Minerva preened "She moves like a fighter... Most duelers don't train their bodies well enough. In fact, most wizards completely ignore it. Her body was in top shape, though. Her reactions, perfectly on time. Do you know if she has a habit of getting into fights? I got the feeling she was pretty used to them."

Dumbledore hummed. "I might ask Molly the next time I meet her." Those were good news anyway. The girl was a Gryffindor too.

Dumbledore looked over the table and continued. "Does anyone have anything more to say about the Black?"

He was met with silence.

"Well, the next one is..."

"I see him!" Tranalley stood up suddenly and screamed. Her eyes were trembling and going over the room widely...

Dumbledore frowned...That looked like...

Another prophecy. Damn it!

She started trembling and retreating to a corner of the room as if trying to escape something "By Merlin...I see him! He is here!" She was breathing hard and her face was distorted in horror. "He's here!"

Something was strange.

Severus was the first to notice, he ran towards her and started casting diagnostic spells. Madame Pomfrey rose hurriedly and approached as well, her face was grim.

"The Demon Emperor is here!" Tranalley screamed. "He who reshapes worlds! He is the darkness that consumes darkness, the evil that swallows evil!"

Dumbledore's eyes widened. No! It couldn't be! Everything was going perfect. He couldn't allow it. He wouldn't allow! Damn it... If there weren't so many people watching him right now, he would have stopped that prophecy even if he had to kill her.

Would that have been enough to stop the Law of Retraction, though? He clicked his tongue. There were enough prophecies going around already. Whatever was coming, at this point, he couldn't stop it.

Tranalley stopped suddenly and went still as a rock. She looked over the other teachers and said, her voice filled with horror.

_"Lelouch vi Britannia_ is here, and I fear for us all."

She fell on the ground limply, and immediately Poppy started to work on her. Minutes went by with dumbledore sweating profusely. Poppy sighed and stood up again with a sad expression.

"She is dead."

**AN:** OK, I will be clearing up some questions you guys had:

First, Aldwin is the 1th king of Britain in the CG universe (He is canon. 98 generations before Lelouch). He was a Celtic king from even before the times of Camelot. The reason Cadogan called him prince is that his past was revealed to him by Nunnally during one of their chats before Lelouch had even met him. Some of you guys must have noticed I don't have a habit of chewing everything out for the reader. I think It is more exciting for them to try to piece the clues themselves. The reason I am relating this all is that Aldwin, though he is canon, doesn't appear in the anime, so many of you guys probably have never heard of him.

I will be using Arthurian legends as a tying point between CG and HP, it won't be the main plot though; It was there, so I just had to use it. There's a lot of things that just fit very well.

BTW I find it preposterous that no one has made a good crossover between FSN and HP featuring Artoria. There is even that prophecy about the return of the king just waiting to be used. To be honest, I had half a mind to make this a three-way crossover when I was starting.

**AN2**: Britannia's Anthem is awesome. Check it on YTB


	17. Chapter 17 - Banners

"A duel?" Kallen deadpanned. "Are you a fool, Harry? A duel at midnight?"

They had just left the Potion's class and were having a meal in the great hall. It was strange how well their group clicked together. Kallen, being more mature then the rest ended up acting as the voice of reason among them.

"Malfoy was asking for it" Ron grumbled. Harry nodded.

She sighed. "And you fell for his provocation."

Ron had the dignity of looking ashamed.

Beside them were Ophelia and her friend, Hermione, who occasionally joined their group, even though she was supposed to be a Ravenclaw. Apparently, she wasn't fitting very well in Ravenclaw. Strange, considering her love for books.

Ophelia changed recently. During the first days after the ceremony, she was morose and reclusive. For some reason, though, she started to act a lot more like a Gryffindor recently. She was smiling a lot more. Maybe she was always like this? Hermione didn't seem surprised by the change, but rather, pleased.

It was curious how much she resembled Lelouch, even though her personality was a polar opposite.

"Do you even know how to duel. Have you learned the disarming charm yet?" she asked him.

Harry nodded. "I learned it in the charm class last week."

Kallen sighed. They were still kids, they probably wouldn't hurt themselves throwing inoffensive spells and jinxes at one another, but still...

Suddenly, Ron's eyes widened. "By the way, what the hell was that in the flying class?"

Oh, here it comes.

"What?" she turned her head

"What...what?" he stuttered. "Everything! The spell? Where did you learn it? Why the hell did you protect the Black bastard? He's a slime snake!"

She smirked at him. "That is for me to know and for you to guess, Roniekins."

He blushed and sulked "It was the twins right? It had to be."

She chuckled. Suddenly, Ron jumped from his seat and pointed at her. "I know! Teach harry that spell for his duel with Malfoy, so that we can kick his ass."

Kallen rolled her eyes. Protego wasn't a simple spell. The twins taught her some time ago, with the poor wand they brought for her in some forgotten shop at the back alley.

Would it be bad to teach them? Harry was staring at her expectantly. Probably not. It was a spell meant for protection after all. It was actually a good idea to teach them

"Alright," she sighed.

"As for the...Black bastard," she smirked. "I have...plans for him."

...

His interrogation of Sir Cadogan bore more fruits he expected.

Hogwarts had, apparently, five hidden rooms, thirteen secret passages, and multiple assorted secrets. Many of which had been lost to the living but kept by the dead.

One of them was of especial interest to Lelouch.

The Room of Requirement was singular even among the repository of insanity that was this castle. From what Cadogan described, it was a room that would offer anything the person who opened it needed. Anything. How did that even work? Transmutation? It was the only theory he had going, nothing else seemed to make sense.

A room that transmuted itself in anything the person needed. What were the limitations? Could it create books, logs, diaries? Could it recreate a computer? Or maybe a Knightmare?

It had to have limitations. Maybe the knowledge of the person who opened it? Maybe the total collection of objects inside the castle at a point in time? Maybe it, somehow, scanned every object that ever entered the castle and kept it in a magical hard-drive, ready to reproduce? Those were the less absurd possibilities he could come up with.

As he strolled towards the seventh year corridor, Millicent followed just a step behind him, glaring at anyone who passed by them

Lelouch smirked. Millicent had taken up the job of protecting him like a fish in water. No one tried to mess with Lelouch yet, but he had seen their eyes, especially the Gryffindors. It wouldn't be long until someone took the first shot at him. If he let it happen, it would be bad. More and more people would gather the courage and there would be no end to his troubles.

With Millicent next to him though...

The girl was as big as a third-year and with a violent streak the size of Britannia. She kept most of his would-be bullies away just with her glare. Indeed, thugs were an essential part of any organization. In that, Malfoy had the right idea.

"Stop it, Draco!" someone shouted, down the hallway.

Oh, here he was...

Two girls were cornered in a wall, with Malfoy grinning in front of them, while Malfoy's thugs hit a Hufflepuff who had fallen the floor. Lelouch shook his head in disappointment. Did Lelouch really ever considered Malfoy an obstacle for his rise in the Slytherin hierarchy? with this kind of behavior? Lelouch was getting rusty.

"Bullying Hufflepuff's Malfoy? How...infantile." Lelouch said. Malfoy turned his face to look at him. The girls noticed Lelouch and shrunk a little more on their corner.

Malfoy growled. "Black..." he said. "This has nothing to do with you."

Lelouch smirked. "I thought the Rightful Heir," he said, scornfully. "Would have better things to do with his time." he snorted. "I certainly won't waste time with this kind of childishness"

Crabble and Goyle stopped hitting the boy and went to Malfoy's side with malicious scowls on their faces.

Millicent took a step towards them and loomed over. She grunted something Lelouch didn't understand. The boys took a step back and stood down. Malfoy scowled.

"Come, Crabble, Goyle," he said and turned away, flapping his cape in a way not unlike snape.

Lelouch turned to look at the girls. Instead of thankfulness, the distanced themselves from Lelouch even more. One of them was bone white with fear. Lelouch snorted and left, with Millicent in his heels.

In his face, there was a smirk, with just a tinge of sadness.

...

Lelouch stopped in front of the Tapestry of Barbamas, the Balmy and looked it over. Wizards had a very bad taste in decoration. A dozen trolls, dressed as ballerinas, continuously hit the small man in their middle with wooden clubs with unrestrained brutality.

He turned to Millicent and she turned her face just a little towards him.

"What you will see now is a secret," Lelouch said. "I hope I won't have to reinforce how important it is for you to keep it. Tell no one about it. Not even Daphne."

She looked a little hesitant but nodded anyway.

"Don't worry, I will probably show her some time." Maybe he could use this knowledge to negotiate with the Greengrasses from a more powerful position. Such an important secret could be passed down in their family and help them rise in Hogwarts for generations.

He turned back and chanted in his head what he needed

"I need an office, the rulebook, wizard money, forbidden knowledge, training dummies, and a baseball bat."

He did it three times and a door appeared in what was, just recently, a blank wall. Lelouch blinked in surprise as he saw the interior of the room. It seemed the room had some kind of limited access to his own thoughts.

At the very back of the room, two very big medieval banners stood gloriously on the walls. Black as coal, framing the chair on the center, showing the silver symbol of the Black Knights. On the center of the wall, though, stood the crest of Britannia. A snake and a lion, embracing each other on a field of blue. Was the room mocking him? Putting this symbol here? Lelouch scowled.

In front of the banners and the crest, there was a long wooden study. On a corner of the room, next to the door, stood the three dummies. Lelouch smirked. They looked like Charles zi Britannia. Maybe the room liked him? On the left side of the room, there was a long bookcase.

He took the bat and gave it to Millicent. "Go have some fun while I work."

She grinned maliciously.

There seemed to be no money anywhere in the room. It probably was part of its limitations.

Lelouch went to the study and was surprised again with what he found there.

There was a stack of blank papers, a feather pen inside a bottle of dye, a book, and at the center of the table...

At the center of the table stood his Zero Uniform. Carefully folded and cleaned. Above it, his mask stared at him, expectantly, as if waiting for his decision.

Lelouch chuckled melancholically. "No, I won't be needing it anymore, or at least not for now," he said. The uniform disapeared sucked inside the table. It really did seem to be a transfiguration of some kind, or maybe just conjuration.

He sat on the chair and started to read the rulebook of the room while Millicent bashed his father's face next to the door.

So, anything he brought from the room would only exist for seven days outside it. Any money it made for him would immediately be noticed as the result of transfiguration by any wizard with some minimal competence. The room couldn't solve his monetary problems. He had already guessed that, If it could, the wizarding world wouldn't have an economy since everyone would be able to create money at will.

As Lelouch imagined, the room could reproduce the objects existing right now inside the castle, but it could not reproduce their magic. It also could change them a little, based on the user's personality and experience. So, that was the reason for the banners and the uniform.

Lelouch smirked. It was an amazing find. With a room capable of reproducing the books in the library, he cold read anything he wanted and no one would know, including books in the restricted section. Maybe even the books on dumbledore's personal stash.

Not now though. He was late for DADA class, already. He sighed and went over to Millicent. Pieces of Charles were spread over the room

"Good job, Millicent," he said. "Let's go, we are late for the next class."

Millicent grunted and left with him, bringing the baseball bat with her.

...

Kallen had found an empty classroom to teach Harry the Protego. He was still way too green though. She had to manually guide him through most of the movements. It was strange that 'The Harry Potter' had no familiarity with wands.

"Well...I guess this is good enough" She said. Harry smiled.

Ron was out in the corner of the room, trying to create a protego as well. Hermione was on one of the chairs, doing their homework. Go figure.

Ophelia had been the first of them to do it. She seemed to be a very gifted witch. Well, going by who her brother was, and by the fact she was a Black, it shouldn't be a surprise. They finished, gathered their things, and left the room, Gryffindor was going to have herbology with the Ravenclaws now, so Hermione followed after them.

They had just turned a corner when they came face to face with him.

Lelouch stopped suddenly as well when he saw Kallen and his sister. Lelouch twisted his mouth in displeasure. Behind him, an ogre of a girl stood, in Slytherin uniform, with a baseball bat the size of Lelouch on her shoulder. Staring intently at them.

"Black..." Kallen grinned, angrily. "I didn't expect to meet you again like this."

"Weasley." he scowled. "I seem to keep running into you. Are you, by any chance, stalking me?"

She snorted. "Get your mind out of the gutter, Black." She was just making sure he didn't get himself killed, again.

She looked at the girl behind him and grunted. "By the way, who is she? Aren't you going to introduce me to your new friend?"

Lelouch grinned evilly. "Of course, how could I forget. Let me introduce you to Millicent, my new...bodyguard."

Karin seemed shocked. "Your new...bodyguard?" she clenched her hands and frowned.

Lelouch put his hand on his chin and nodded. "Indeed. it is her job to keep angry and violent people away from me..."

Karin bit gritted her teeth, frowned and glared at Millicent. "I don't like her."

Millicent grunted.

Lelouch smiled and nodded. "Then she is doing her job well enough," he said and turned to look at Ophelia.

"Lu...Julius..." she said, glaring at him angrily. "What do you want?"

Lelouch smirked. He really did look genuinely happy. "Ophelia," he said. "It seems you are finally beginning to grow up." He chuckled. "No matter, you are still insignificant in my eyes."

"Shut up, you Black Bastard!" Ron shouted. "You know nothing about her!"

Lelouch smirked. "I know everything about her. She is my sister, after all."

Harry stood beside Ron and the two of them stood in front of Lelouch, glaring angrily at him.

"Black Bastard..." Lelouch tasted the word "I think I like it..." he said "Well then, I believe I am late for my next class." he turned back to Kallen and grinned. "Maybe we can trade barbs some other time, Weasley girl."

He left them there and went his way, with the ogre girl behind him.

"Idiot..." Kallen was grinning.

...

Lelouch frowned.

He was in DADA class. Watching the teacher intently, trying to understand why he was acting like he was.

Quirrel was still looking at everyone in the eyes as he gave his class. His stuttering was still that same bad impersonation. There was a difference though.

He was avoiding Lelouch.

He didn't try to call his attention even once during class. Didn't ask him questions, and the most strange difference: he wasn't looking at Lelouch in the eyes. He was trying to pretend Lelouch didn't exist.

Lelouch tried to feign sleep in class once to see his reaction. He stayed like that for two entire minutes, until Daphne hit him with a stack of papers. Something changed. In the few moments Quirrel glanced at him, it was with a strange mixture of anger, reluctance, and curiosity. As if Lelouch had done something to confront him, to insult him, and he couldn't accept it somehow.

Lelouch's eyes narrowed. Maybe it was time to start being careful around Quirrel.


	18. Chapter 18 - Worth

Lelouch and his faction were lounging in the common room, talking about various topics, when Eric, the Slytherin prefect, approached them. Some distance away, Malfoy was looking at them, smirking.

"Black." He called. The other prefect stood just beside him. It was a black-haired girl from the sixth year.

Daphne glanced at Lelouch in curiosity. Lelouch waved his hand, signaling that it was no problem. He turned and greeted the prefect.

"Prefect Erik." he said, respectfully. "Is there something you want to talk about?"

The prefect frowned. "I am here just to remind you of Slytherin's rules," he said. "Do you remember? Do not show disunion in front of the other houses and keep your deferences inside. I have heard from Malfoy you confronted him in the hallways yesterday."

So, the boy went and tattled to the prefect. Fool. He is just showing everyone in the room that he is incapable of solving his own problems. In fact, this was a good opportunity for Lelouch to strengthen his position in this house.

Lelouch smiled. "I did no such thing, prefect. I was actually keeping him from tarnishing the good name of our house."

Erik stared at him in the eyes. Other students were also paying attention to their conversation. "How so, Mr. Black?"

Lelouch nodded. "Tell me, if you were walking in the road and saw a man hitting a cat to death with a club, what would you think?"

The prefect just nodded for him to continue.

"Most people would think 'he's a bastard', 'you can't trust such person', 'what an evil man'. He wouldn't be seen as dangerous, powerful, or even respectful. He would just be seen as a worthless person of no value. He would be seen as a coward, right?

The female Prefect nodded.

"So, tell me, prefect, do you think it is alright for the rest of Hogwarts to see Slytherin as trash?"

Theodore frowned.

"Because that was exactly what Mr. Malfoy was doing yesterday." Lelouch completed. "I found him in the corridor, bullying group of Hufflepuff first-years, they were just little girls."

The female prefect frowned and looked at Malfoy, who was glaring at Lelouch, but didn't deny his guilt.

"Hufflepuffs are not that different than cats," Lelouch said with a smirk. Some students laughed at his joke. "They are inoffensive and run from conflict like cats from water."

"Bullying puffs does not make people respect you, no one is going to fear you for it. They are just going to despise you and badmouth you behind your backs." He said, for the benefit of the audience. "Our backs, since we are Slytherin as well."

"You want to be feared?" Lelouch widened his arms, dramatically, while looking at the other students. Even the older ones were paying attention to his words.

"Do you want to be respected?" he asked. "Then sharpen your aggression. Wait for your moment. And strike. Like a snake. No hesitation, no mercy. Snakes don't play with their food."

Lelouch looked at Malfoy, that at this point already regretted pushing Lelouch. "Snakes don't play with their food, but mammals do, Lions do."

Lelouch smirked pointedly at Malfoy. "You do not act like a Slytherin, Mr. Malfoy... Sometimes I wonder if you are not here because you asked the hat." Malfoy was slowly losing color. "Sometimes I wonder if you are not here because you didn't want to disappoint your papa." he completed. "Your behavior is very...griffindorish."

Time to hit the nail in the head.

"You, Mr. Malfoy, are not worthy of Slytherin."

Suddenly, Malfoys expression changed from white fear to red anger. His face was slowly taking the color of a tomato. He jumped from where he was and threw herself, growling, clawing towards Lelouch.

For a boy with so much insecurity like Malfoy, his worth as a person was a very sensitive topic. Lelouch had intentionally tickled it. He smirked. The boy's reaction would only serve to prove his point.

Theodore Nott and another older student held him as he tried to claw out Lelouch's face, growling unintelligibly. Lelouch scowled and looked around at the other students.

"Like I said...very griffindorish."

...

"Look, Fred, isn't this the evil, evil Black?"

The other twin nodded. "I believe so, George. I can smell his evil from here."

Lelouch frowned. He had heard about them. Daphne had cautioned him. Damn it, more Weasleys... Will he ever be free of them?

"The Weasley twins..." he drawled. "I have heard about your...work," he smirked. "I must say the last one you pulled with Draco was quite tasteful." No reason to make himself a target. They already had a lot of reasons to prank Lelouch, though him being in Slytherin was already enough. Some praises go a long way to make friends and they cost nothing.

The one named Fred cleaned a fake tear. "George...George...someone who recognizes the beauty of our work..."

"Yes Fred, I never thought the day would come...And to think it would be an evil, evil Black."

The other put his hand on his chin and stared at Lelouch's face. "Indeed...so evil. Look at that face, George. Its a real-life _Demon Lord._"

Lelouch had a nervous tick.

"Indeed Fred. I've even heard he was rising a _rebellion_ against the older Slytherins to become the supreme ruler of his house."

"I've heard he gives _zero_ fucks to what anyone thinks of him."

"And it makes everything even worse. I've heard girls saying he looks just like a _prince_!"

"The world is very unfair for normal looking guys like us, Fred."

"Yeah, we're like seven. He's like _eleven_ points in handsomeness."

Lelouch rolled his eyes and decided to entertain them. "Maybe, if you swear your eternal loyalty to me and my evil empire, I will show you my secrets of attraction."

"Look, look, Fred, he knows how to joke!"

"He's a Slytherin, and a Black, and he knows how to joke, I didn't think it was possible, George"

The Weasley twins were very different from the younger boy, Ronald, and from the one that was prefect, Percival. They didn't take him as seriously as those two, nor did they despise him just for the sake of it. They seemed to be completely ignoring what he said in the entrance ceremony.

Lelouch blinked in realization. They weren't trying to bully or prank him. What they were doing right now was a diplomatic opening of negotiations. They were sounding Lelouch out, trying to see if Lelouch would accept their hand in friendship...

Lelouch almost clicked his tongue. Maybe he was rusty. Maybe he just was way too defensive recently, expecting attacks from every side.

Lelouch smiled and offered his hand. "I am Julius Black, the evilest slytherin. But you already knew it."

The one called Fred grinned and shook his hand. "It is a pleasure to finally meet the evil lord of slytherin."

Lelouch nodded. "When I finally start my evil takeover of Hogwarts, I will call on you to help with the evil, evil pranks," he said.

The twins traded looks and grinned

George smirked. "And if you ever need new minions to execute your evil, evil plans, don't be afraid to count on us, little snake."

...

The next day, during a free period, Lelouch returned to the Room of Requirement, this time alone. It was time to see what books the room brought to him. The books weren't organized in any way or form. The room just threw the books haphazardly on the shelves. Lelouch decided to search through them in the order they were presented.

"Reanimation and necromancy." he said. "disgusting."

He put the book back and took another one. "Secrets of the soul ?" he raised his eyebrows. "sounds interesting." He put the book on the table and went to search for more of them. A lot of the books seemed to come in other languages. One of them looked like nothing more than a sequence of "s'" with different lengths and forms. Others he simply couldn't open. Some of them showed only black pages to him.

Not many of them were about dark arts, as he first had believed. A lot of them were just too much complicated to be put in the free section. Some of them were about potions that couldn't be put in the hands of teenagers, like the love potion or the aphrodisiac potion. Some were about dangerous spells or potions that could harm the user if done wrongly.

"The Occlumens Palace?"

What he found in that book filled him with fear.

He noticed he was completely ignoring the possibility that someone could be reading his mind. How stupid of him. Why not? He had already seen so much absurdity since he first arrived in this world.

What if they could even influence his thoughts like he probably did that day in the park? What if they could do as his father did to him and rewrite his memories? The possibility filled him with fear.

He would not be able to trust his most powerful tool, his own mind.

He needed to learn occlumancy.


	19. Chapter 19 - Meeting

Arthur Weasley was pacing in front of the fireplace. Molly had just finished bringing the chairs to the sitting room. She was also worried and was constantly looking for things out of place to fix.

About an hour ago they have received a message, brought by Fawkes, calling for a meeting of the Order.

Arthur stopped and sighed.

It couldn't be anything good. It has been a decade since the last time Dumbledore gathered them. He still remembered the occasion. It was the day he learned about the death of the Potters. The damned bird was never good news.

Did something happen to his children? Probably not. If that had happened, Dumbledore wouldn't have the face to ask him to host the meeting at his own house. It still couldn't be anything good.

After some time, the members started to arrive via floo. The first one to appear was Moody, and he was quite...moody. Shacklebolt arrived soon afterward. Snape came soon as well, and Lupin after him.

It was so strange to see all these people in the same place without Dumbledore here. They didn't seem to have anything in common.

After some more minutes, Dumbledore arrived. He seemed shaken, Minerva came just after him, and she was ghostly white.

He stared at the people gathered and proclaimed. "I have grave news."

Everyone took their seats. Dumbledore stood standing. When he noticed he had everyone's attention, he said "Trelawney is dead." he said.

Moody glared at him. "Elaborate."

Dumbledore sagged, took a handkerchief from his pocket, and started wiping his sweat. "She made a new prophecy."

Moody stood up in a flash. "Fuck you and your prophecies dumbledore!" he shouted. "How many people are going to die because of them? Weren't the potters enough?"

"This is serious, Moody. This prophecy changes everything." Dumbledore answered.

Moody growled. "Who was it?"

Dumbledore blinked. "What do you mean?"

He scowled. "Who killed your pet seer? Was it the death eaters? They have been keeping their heads down since Voldemort's supposed death."

Dumbledore sighed. "No one did it, Moody. She simply died after giving the prophecy, I don't know why. I have never seen anything like that."

Moody rolled her eyes. "Prophecies don't kill, dumbledore. Out with it, who did it?"

It wasn't Dumbledore who answered. "She just...died," Minerva said, grasping a cup of water. Her knuckles were white. "I have never heard her sound so terrified."

Shacklebolt chose that time to intervene. He narrowed his eyes "What were the contents, dumbledore."

Dumbledore wiped his face again with the handkerchief, took a breath and recited.

"The Demon Emperor is here. He who reshapes worlds. He is the darkness that consumes darkness, the evil that swallows evil. _Lelouch vi Britannia_ is here, and I fear for us all"

For the next seconds, no one said a word.

"What the fuck!" Moody shouted. There was a smidge of fear in his voice. "What the fuck was that?"

"I have already inspected the student's book in Hogwarts. I have also looked into the files of the Wizengamot. There was never a "Vi Britannia" family in England, from what I could gather." Dumbledore said.

"Do you think we are dealing with another Dark Lord, Dumbledore?" Arthur asked, His heart was beating anxiously in his chest.

Snape scowled. "Obviously."

"Demon Emperor..." Lupin whispered. "The prophecy does not call him dark lord, like the one made for harry, it calls him Demon Emperor, specifically. Does this title have a meaning we don't know?

"It also calls him darkness that consumes darkness." Dumbledore sighed. "I think it is pretty clear we are dealing with another dark lord. A very powerful one"

Moody scowled pensively. His eyes lost in some distant memory "You are not talking about another Voldemort. You are talking about another Grindelwald."

Dumbledore nodded. "I fear so my friends" he sighed. "And this isn't the first prophecy I've heard about this man."

Moody was almost glaring a hole in dumbledore. "What do you mean?" he growled.

"There were...others." He answered reluctantly. "They started popping up all around the world soon after Harry's birth." he wiped his face once more. It was a cold evening, but most people inside the house were sweating, including Arthur.

"There was one about a Zero man, who died, but lived. One about a black order that brings light. One of them talked about a red queen that was a black knight. There was even one of them that spoke of the knights of the round sitting on a square room." he continued. "contradiction seems to be a common theme in every prophecy made about this man."

"And of all of them," he continued. "The most worrying one was the one a received some day ago, from the seersinger," he said "_A world remade, a requiem played. A prophecy broken, a command spoken. Of long dead blood, a king reborn_."

Shacklebolt soon caught on to what he was implying. "A prophecy broken...You think the prophecy about the potter boy has been retracted."

Dumbledore nodded cautiously.

"Fuck." Arthur didn't even notice it was him that said that.

The silence that extended was broken by Minerva. "One of them calls him king, another calls him emperor. Maybe they are about two different people."

Snape rolled his eyes and snorted. "Prophecies..." He scowled. "Anything they say can be twisted in a way or another. The spirit is the same, anyway. It is about a ruler. Someone who possesses great power and authority."

"We need to stop this man before he has a chance to rise into power, Dumbledore," Shacklebolt said coldly. Arthur couldn't help but agree. Magical Britain wouldn't survive another dark lord.

"And how do you propose we find him?" Snape said. "There is no Vi Britannia family in great Britain."

Arthur frowned "Maybe it is an inactive bloodline? Some squib line that finally had magical scions after centuries without wizards"

Snape barked "One so old it isn't even remembered? impossible"

"Vi Britannia." Lupin mused. "His name is clearly a reference to the British islands."

Minerva interjected. "Britannia..." she said. "It means 'Land of the Britons'. The Britons were the ancient celts who first set foot in the British islands... It is also a name for the personification of the British islands, a goddess, armed with a trident and shield and wearing a Corinthian helmet."

Dumbledore muttered. "Indeed. Strange. Maybe it is just a coincidence?"

The silence stretched until Moody answered. "Or maybe it isn't."

Dumbledore turned to him, sharply. "What do you mean."

Arthur was hearing the sound of Moody clenching his teeth. "It is quite obvious, isn't it?"

Moody scowled. "Of long-dead blood, a king reborn. Of Britannia."

Dumbledore suddenly went still. His face rapidly paling.

"No..." he shook his head. For the first time in his life, Arthur had seen dumbledore truly terrified. It was then that Arthur understood what Moody was implying

"It makes sense, doesn't it," Moody said, in controlled calm.

"That is impossible," Arthur said, in denial. "The line of the old Kings of the Bretons died with Arthur in The Battle of Camlann."

"Merlin helps us all..." Dumbledore said. He was trembling. Arthur had never seen him trembling.

"We are not dealing with another Grindwald," Moody gritted his teeth. "We are dealing with another Mordred."

...

"Mordred was a dark lord?" Lelouch asked in shock.

He had been questioning sir Cadogan for most of the evening now. He was a well of information. Somehow, the chat started to stray to old legends from the past."

"Not a mere dark lord, Milord." He answered, in sadness. "He was _the Dark Lord_, The term _didn't even exist_ before Mordred spread his darkness over Great Britain," he said. His eyes were lost in the past

"The bastard made dementors out of unicorns. He twisted the hearts of the noblest of knights. What happened with Lancelot..." He gulped. "Everything he touched turned into a twisted ruin of itself. He turned Avalon into a place of nightmares and horrors no man can unsee." he cleared a tear that fell from his eye. "Sorry, my lord. It is hard to remember those things."

Lelouch nodded empathically. He needed to know more though.

"It wasn't Arthur who stopped Mordred." Cadogan continued. "For all his skill and wisdom, Arthur wasn't a wizard, he was just a muggle. It was Merlin who slayed Mordred. _That_ is the feat that immortalized him: the slaying of the first and most terrible dark lord. It is the reason he is hailed as the greatest wizard of all time. It is the reason wizards that do great things for the light are given the "Order of Merlin, first class" award" he scowled in displeasure. "Instead of the "Knight of the round table." or the "Excalibur" award.

That...certainly answered some questions Lelouch had about the wizarding culture. It was strange Merlin would be acclaimed almost like a god while King Arthur was so easily forgotten. People swore in his name, for god's sake.

And it brought about a dozen more questions. In Lelouch's world, Arthur Pendragon survived after the battle of Caemlann long enough to have an heir. The bloodline of Alwin I survived through the Britannian Royal Family in the centuries after it.

There was a reason Lelouch was hailed as the 99th emperor of Britannia, after all. There were 98 emperors before him. It was even mentioned in Britannia's Anthem:

_"Our emperor stands astride this world. He'll vanquish every foe."_

_"His bloodline immortal and pure. All hail Britannia."_

In Lelouch's world, the bloodline of Alwin had ruled for hundreds of years, even after the conquest of the British islands. In this world, it has been dead for millennia. What did it mean for Lelouch? Probably nothing. He was a Black now and had no ties of any kind with the ancient kings of Britannia.

Right?

AN: I just can't keep from mentioning Arthurian legends, considering it is one of the main tying points between HP e CG. There's a lot of things that just fit.

AN2: Britannia's Anthem is awesome. Check it on YTB


	20. Chapter 20 - Troll

The next weeks went very calmly. Lelouch got a habit of disappearing during the free periods to study magic in the Room of Requirement. He didn't need the library like the other students, so he mostly stayed in the room. Daphne was getting curious as to what he has been doing. He just smiled secretly at her when she asked, to ignite her curiosity, it still wasn't time to reveal his secrets.

He had started to learn about mind magic. There truly was a danger for him there. Legimancy and occlumancy...There was nothing on legimancy on the library, even among the forbidden section, but there were some books on Occlumancy, and right now, that was his priority. Secrets have always been his main weapons, after all.

He reasoned that, if he became good enough in occlumancy, he could maybe "reverse engineer" Legilmancy. He would certainly find out some things about how it worked by learning to protect himself against it.

Even so, the first page of the book was already almost incomprehensible to him. He was just starting to learn magic. Jumping right away to advanced mind magic would be hard and strenuous, he couldn't avoid it though.

He also started studying magical paintings. He could probably use it to make some money. He also had some...interesting ideas.

It seemed Nunnally's charisma was still overwhelming, even as a portrait. The other portraits in the castle loved her. He occasionally saw her in the corridors, laughing with other noble ladies, playing with children, and being...flirted by knights.

Lelouch scowled.

It was a good thing ser Cadogan was always accompanying her or Lelouch might have already burned some of those paintings

As for his other classmates. Most of them just hated him. He chuckled. A small number feared him. There were a lot of bad rumors about him. Ophelia stopped flinching every time she saw him and started glaring back. The Potter and Ron Weasley made a clique with her. Hermione and the Weasley girl gravitated around it, but Hermione was of an entirely different house, and the other girl just didn't seem to click with them.

She seemed curious about Lelouch, though.

He wasn't blind. He noticed she constantly glanced at him from Gryffindor's table on the other side of the hall. It was strange that she didn't hate Lelouch, considering she was the one to punch him when he all but disowned his sister. Did she read his intentions or something? He was quite sure Daphne did. She didn't seem to take him seriously at the times he mentioned his sister's inferiority.

Daphne and Karin seemed to dislike each other instinctively. When Lelouch questioned Daphne about it, she said that the Weasleys pretty much disliked anyone who wasn't strictly aligned with the light families. In other words, anyone outside Dumb's little clique. He didn't get that impression from the twins though. Their morals seemed pretty...elastic.

Things were going well. Even boring, one could say.

Until Halloween.

They were in the Great Hall. Eating the Halloween-themed banquet. Lelouch once again questioned the wizardkind tastes. Pumpkin juice, pumpkin fries, and pumpkin soup? Just horrible.

At his side, Daphne silently ate a salad. Tracy was trying to bring her into a conversation, but Daphne just wasn't interested. Lelouch took his time to look at the other students around the hall. Millicent was sitting at his other side, face impassive and with her eyebrows lightly frowned as she stared at Daphne's dish with disgust, her own plate was filled with every kind of meat. Tracy made a comment from time to time, but Lelouch wasn't paying attention to the content, just nodding with his head and going along.

On the other side of the hall, the Gryffindors were in a festive mood, completely different from Slytherin. Ophelia was excitedly talking about something with another girl from her house. She didn't even glance at him. The Weasley girl's behavior was on the other end of the spectrum, she glanced at Lelouch every ten seconds, before turning her face away to look at something else. On his own table, Draco was doing the same, but his look was filled with repressed anger. Lelouch gave him a smile before glancing with the corners of his eyes at the teacher's table.

The atmosphere among the teachers was very different from the one at the banquet at the start of the year. He had received recent intelligence from Cadogan that Dumbledore was asking the portraits about one Vi Britannia magical family and about a person named Lelouch.

Lelouch gritted his teeth. How did they learn his previous name? It should have been impossible. It was never said by anyone in this world. It seemed Lelouch was still underestimating the resources available in this world for the wizards. Thankfully he had asked Cadogan to never mention Nunally's surname to any of the other paintings. Nunally Lamperouge was slowly becoming the new dear of these old portraits.

She was becoming well know over the portraits circles. It was amazing that no one noticed that a new portrait suddenly sprung out of nowhere and became the center of attention. She was still avoiding Dumbledore though. The old man was a centenary and half of these years he spent in this building. He probably can recognize and remember the name of every portrait.

Lelouch wanted to know how his name was found. Was there another Lelouch in this world? Another version of him hiding somewhere? Improbable. Lelouch was a britannian name, not an english one. Vi Britannia couldn't have existed since the Pendragons were extinguished.

This was about him.

He scowled and put down his plate as he looked at the teacher's table. Dumbledore was plastering a smile and waving a cup as he talked with Minerva about something. Snape was glaring at everyone. For some strange reason, Quirrell wasn't there. That was curious, this was an important event in the english calendar, especially among wizards.

"I'll be going first," Lelouch said, as he rose from his seat. Daphne nodded. Millicent looked at him, then back at her plate filled with meat. She shrugged, picked a chicken egg from her plate and followed him.  
Some of the other students glanced at him when they noticed him leaving earlier. Malfoy elbowed Crabble and whispered something on his ear.

Lelouch didn't pay any more attention to them and left for his bedroom. He had two books from the Room of Requirement over his desk there. He had especially asked the room if she could change the cover of those books with something more socially acceptable. Instead of "secrets of the mind" and "Dark Magic: introduction and protection." he had over his desk "World history of magic," and "Charms, vol 1". He didn't even try to hide them since it would only make people more suspicious. They were lying there in front of everyone.

He also needed to work better on his counterintelligence. He already had a good plan, but still didn't possess the skill to make it happen, maybe only in the next year.

Lelouch walked hastily. Millicent was just behind him, still eating her chicken. Lelouch entered the restroom in the corridor and reached for the faucet to wash his face. He had to start compiling a list of tasks. Things were going out of his control.

Millicent was still behind him. Did she not notice this was the male restroom?

At that moment, someone appeared on the door.

"Black..." Malfoy growled. Beside him were Crabble and Goyle. All of them were holding wands as they entered the restroom while aiming at him. Lelouch raised his eyebrows.

"Do you think this is funny, Black?" Malfoy growled.

Lelouch chuckled. "Did you notice that every time you call me 'Black', you are indirectly validating my claim to the Black House's seat?"

"Shut up, half-blood!" he was frothing from his mouth.

Millicent walked toward them cracking her knuckles, but Malfoy just waved his wand and locked her legs together, making her fall loudly on the floor.

Lelouch's wand was still in his robes, he couldn't reach for it, otherwise, Malfoy would just disarm him with an expeliarmus. He had no confidence in this body's athleticism as well, he was never very active and that didn't change in this life. He decided to do something he was very good at, he decided to bluff.

He grinned. "Congratulations, Malfoy." he chuckled and opened his arms invitingly. Lelouch curved his smile sideways and calmly provoked him. "You have me at your mercy. What now?"

Malfoy's eyes widened. Lelouch was just smiling calmly at him as if he had everything under control. This reaction took Malfoy completely by surprise. The last time Lelouch baited him like this, he lost a lot of standing on the Slytherin house. Now Lelouch was doing the same thing.

Malfoy just stood there, aiming his wand at him, uncertain of what to do, frowning, with confusion in his face

"What now Malfoy?" Lelouch asked.

Before their standoff could continue, they heard heavy steps sounding outside.

...

Karin was bored. And pissed.

She glanced at Lelouch and his little clique. Daphne, the cold bitch of Slytherin, smirked at Kallen from where she tasted her food, with a bitchy expression, as if saying "What's up?". Argh, she was just so irritating. On his other side, the heavyset usurper ate her food like a wild animal, scattering scraps everywhere. How did Lelouch end with her as a protector? It should have been Karin.

Karin sighed. She really wanted to reveal herself to him now.

Beside her, the other children talked about the upcoming game of quidditch between Gryffindor and Slytherin. It would be Harry's first game. She tuned them out and focused her attention on the Slytherin table.

There was a visible separation between the first-years. Lelouch and Malfoy didn't even trade words. Draco seemed alienated on Slytherin.

Suddenly, Lelouch pushed his plate away and rose from his seat. Millicent rose as well and they left ahead of the other students for the Slytherin dorm. Karin clicked her tongue in annoyance.

She turned back to her food with a scowl, took a bunch of pumpkin fries and started to absentmindedly much them. Some time passed until a commotion started in the hall.

The doors opened loudly, accepting a frizzled and very anxious Quirrell. He ran to the teacher's table. Dumbledore stood up and frowned at him. All the people in the hall had their attention on him. He shouted.

"Troll! Troll in the dungeons."

After this, he staggered and fainted. Confusion took over the hall, but Kallen wasn't even noticing it.

The Slytherin dorm was in the dungeons.

Lelouch.

She gritted her teeth, and as the teachers were gathering the students to slowly evacuate the hall, she slipped away and ran towards the dungeons. She just hoped she would arrive in time. She heard someone call her name behind her, but she didn't care.

As she was approaching the potion's classroom, she started to hear shouts and sounds of crashing. There, in the restroom!

Malfoy and Crabble were running in her direction, away from the room. She passed by them, entered the room and stared at the scene.

Millicent had fallen on the ground, and for some reason, she couldn't get up. Goyle's arms were a mess of blood and flesh, pieces of his bones could be seen where they pierced the skin.

The Troll was in front of Lelouch, it had its club raised to its side, ready to do a horizontal swing. Lelouch was pressed on the door to the toilet, gritting his teeth, with an uncommon expression of fear and confusion on his face.

She shouted. "Lelouch!"

He turned his head and stared at her with shock. His eyes widened in surprise. At the same time, the club flew to his side, breaking through the doors and the walls that separated the toilets and reducing them to a pile of rubble. Lelouch flew, crashed on a sink and fell on the ground. He didn't move anymore.

Karin saw red.

She growled and jumped at it, taking her wand from her robe and aiming at its hand. "Expeliarmus!" She screamed, the club flew from its arm to the other side of the restroom. The troll finally noticed Karin and snarled at her.

She transmuted the ground beneath her and ran for the door. The troll went into a rage as he locked on her. It ran after her and slipped in the small layer of ice beneath it that she had transmuted, smashing its face on the floor. It tried to stand up multiple times, but its already bad sense of balance didn't help. It slipped and fell continuously.

Kallen scowled. She went to its club and transmuted it into a misshapen spear. It was a rush job, but as long as it could pierce a troll's thick skin, it would be enough.

...

Dumbledore, Minerva, and Snape ran through the hallway, towards the restroom.

They met Malfoy in the hallway, running away from something. He was terrified, but they managed to get a brief description of what was happening from him. A troll, in Hogwarts...it had to be Tom's work. Dumbledore scowled. Maybe it was an opportunity to get rid of the Black boy. If Karin Weasley wasn't involved in it, Dumbledore would wait a little more to intervene, but alas, Arthur was an important member of the order. One he didn't want to lose.

They saw the door to the restroom from a distance. Water was seeping from the room and reflecting the torches on the walls.

Dumbledore rushed inside the room, ready to heroically defeat the Troll, but the scene inside was completely different from what he expected.

The room was dark, some of the torches on the walls had been put out. The broken sinks were throwing water everywhere. In a corner of the room, a student had fallen on the ground above a puddle of water. In another corner, another student wailed, his arms were a mess. In the middle of it all, a troll was laying on the ground while a small girl twisted spear on its throat, her face was painted red with its blood.

It was Minerva that broke their silence.

"By Merlin!" Minerva shouted. "What is happening here? why aren't you in your rooms?"

The girl stared at her teacher listlessly. "Professor, two students are dying here, maybe it isn't the time to question me yet?" she asked in a confident tone.

Minerva opened her mouth to retort, blinked in surprise, looked around her and ran out of the restroom, probably to call for poppy. The Weasley went to check on the Black boy. She put her finger on his neck to search for his heartbeat and sighed in relief.

Dumbledore stared at the girl in curiosity "Did you kill it? How?

She frowned at Dumbledore. "Transmutation." She said as she looked over the boy to search for injuries, before sighing and slowly lowered him to the floor. Dumbledore smiled. Such a brave and caring girl. She respected and showed worry even for those that were lost to the darkness, truly a blessing for Griffindor. He would have to congratulate Arthur for such a good job.

She was weirdly silent though... Well, she just killed a 'person' for the first time in her life, it couldn't be easy for her. The fact that she was feeling guilty for it, even if it was just a troll, showed the purity of her heart. Dumbledore would have to call her for a talk afterward to help her get over it. He couldn't have an army that was afraid to kill his enemies, could he?

Minerva returned soon after that with poppy and her helpers. They brought the injured students to the infirmary. The girl accompanied them every free moment she had for the next days. It was a shame she was wasting these feelings with children of Death Eaters, but it still warmed Dumbledore's wrinkled old heart that she was capable of it.

AN: Hey guys. I am going to try a daily schedule from now on. I want to practice my writing skills, and maybe, one day, write a web novel from my own. It will probably be in my country's native language though, I am well aware of my bad English grammar. I also want to thank the encouraging comments I received. Positive feedback is the life and blood of an author.


	21. Chapter 21 - Bastard

_Lelouch was following Ophelia in annoyance as she visited the stalls, an expression of wonder on her face. Miss Alice, for some irritating reason, decided to bring the kids of the orphanage to the amusement park that opened recently in the neighborhood. Lelouch would rather stay at home._

_He was holding her hand as she ate sweet cotton. Miss Alice was holding her other hand. The other caretakers were bringing the accompanying the other children around the park. It was just the three of them here right now._

_His memories went back to his time in Britannia. Such a contrast. When he was this age back then he was walking through the fields of corpses with Suzaku and Nunnally, the sky gray with smoke, and the sound of bombers and rushing knightmares everywhere around him. How many times did he think he was going to die back then? how many times did he think about ending it all? About loading the gun and end both his and Nunnally's lives? To her, he was always the strong older brother that could endure it all and stand tall like an invincible colossus. He chuckled to himself. He was nothing but a miserable wretch._

_"Julius, look!" Nunnally pulled his hand towards one of the stalls. Her lilac eyes shining with mirth. It had been so long since he saw them like this. the last time she opened her eyes, it was only to show anger, and at the end, horrified despair._

_He blinked._

_Ophelia pointed at a plushie in the stall, her grey eyes shining with mirth. It was a fat gray owl. She was so childish, was she really at the same age as him? He smiled in exasperation and patted her._

_It was a shooting stall. One of those every circus has, with a pile of items on a shelf and a pressure shotgun that launched corks at high speed. It was extremely hard to shoot accurately and pretty much made for the player to miss._

_Alice glanced at him expectantly. Lelouch scowled. Nunnally was looking at him with upturned eyes. He never could say no to her._

_Lelouch blinked. _

_"Come on Julius!" Alice said, animatedly. her grin was contagious "Are you going to disappoint your sister?"_

_"Pleasee," Ophelia whined._

_Alice started cheering and clapping for him. "Julius! Julius! Julius!" Some passer-bys smiled at the scene. She found it funny to see him blush, didn't she? irritating woman._

_"Brother! Brother!"_

_Alice paid for three rounds. Lelouch took and inspected the weapon. No, it wasn't a weapon, just a toy...he had to remember that. _

_Miss Alice winked at him "Come on, Julius"_

_He took aim and shoot. It missed the toy Ophelia wanted and went far above it. _

_"Ahhh" Miss Alice commented._

_Lelouch took another cork, fixed it on the end of the muzzle, and aimed again. This time, it hit a candy box but missed the target._

_He sighed. Just one more try and he would be free of this nuisance. Lelouch readied the toy again, closed his right eye and carefully aimed at the plushie again. _

_"This time, I am sure he will hit, Ophelia!" Alice encouraged. Ophelia watched expectantly. _

_He pressed the trigger. The bullet flew from the weapon with a bang and a flash. The recoil weapon threw Lelouch flying to the ground, the strong smell of gunpowder invaded his nose. _

_He blinked. _

_In front of him, Ophelia was stretched on the ground, her beige dress painted with red and a strong scent of rust hovering on the air. His eyes widened in shock, the ends of his mouth turned downwards with a scowl of horror and despair. _

_He brought his red hands in front of him and focused on the blood flowing from them to the ground, and forming the puddle he was sitting on. _

_"Congratulations, Lelouch. This time you hit it."_

_Lelouch raised his head in horror to look at the person in front of him. Charles zi Britannia stared proudly at his son. The giant stained glasses of Pendragon's main palace loomed above them._

_"Father..." he whispered. _

_"Once again, you killed another sibling. We are not that different, Lelouch." He approached Lelouch with loud steps. Lelouch backed away from him in horror. His father looked down at him, his frame was as large as the world. His protruding chest exuded pride and arrogance Lelouch never could match. Charles zi Britannia twisted smiled at him "I am proud of you, My son."_

"Noooo!" Lelouch shouted, jumping out from his bed. His sweat was glistening at his face. He gasped and tried to control his breath. It was a dream, just a dream, but it felt so real. Lelouch looked at his hands, they looked clean but he knew they were still stained with the blood of his family.

His breath started to calm down. He looked around him to ascertain where he was. There were multiple beds around him. He could smell herbs and other strange scents he couldn't identify.

Beside him, there were multiple beds. On one of them, a pudgy boy slept, his arms were immobilized in multiple rolls of cloth. There were lit torches on the walls. Torches?

Hogwarts...This wasn't Britannia, he was in Hogwarts. Lelouch sighed in relief. There was no war, no rebellion, no Zero or Charles here. He calmed down and laid back on the bed. Hogwarts, unh? Nunnally would love it here.

What happened? He parsed his memories. he was in the restroom with Malfoy and his goons. There was a troll. Crabble was hit by the troll, who shattered his arms, Malfoy took the chance to escape. Millicent was immobile on the ground. He was about to be hit when he saw Kallen by the door after she shouted his name.

He blinked in surprise.

At that moment, he heard a commotion by the door.

...

Daphne had just left the charm's class. Millicent and Tracey followed after her. It was a free period now and they were going to visit Julius.

She had written her father about the recent happening on Hogwarts and to say he was pissed would be a euphemism. A troll at Hogwarts...He already said he would bring this fact to the next Wizengamot meeting. One of the heirs to a Most Ancient and Noble house almost died...it was unacceptable.

It was only Luck that preserved Julius's life, and even so, he had cracked six ribs, one of them had pierced through a lung. When he finally arrived at the infirmary, he was already about to die.

She sighed and hastened her steps, beside her, Karin Weasley seemed to be going the same way. She clicked her tongue. Talks about her defeating a bloody troll were already spreading among the students. She did not use any complicated spells, only creative use of transmutation and sharp wits. She turned the water that was falling from the broken faucets into ice, taking the mobility from the already slow troll and slowly pierced him in various places from many meters away with a spear. The loss of blood slowed it down. She took a chance and jumped at its neck, finally killing it.

Daphne glanced at the girl walking beside her. Something seemed different about her. She had a lightly frown in her face that was uncommon in Weasleys. her gaze was sharp as a predator. If Daphne were honest, she would say she was scared of the girl.

She clicked her tongue "Why are you following us, Weasley. Your friends are all probably in the common room."

She glanced at Daphne and ignored her, turning her gaze back to the hallway in front of her. Daphne scowled. This girl wasn't like this normally. She was supposed to be easily irritable and simple to provoke.

During the last days, Karin was visiting Julius every time she could. Daphne couldn't understand why. Did she have some kind of bond with him? Impossible. Daphne was certain they had never met before, Julius lived in the muggle world, for Merlin's sake. Weasleys weren't supposed to care about Blacks.

This entire thing puzzled Daphne. She knew there was something there and she would get at the bottom of it.

She decided to use a technique she learned from her mother: Ask questions that would provoke a reaction, gauge the reactions, and based on the answer, ask new questions until she had the entire situation understood on her head.

"So, are you worried about your boyfriend." She asked cheekily.

The girl blinked. She looked at something in the distance absentmindedly. A light blush appeared on her cheeks.

What the hell?

...

When they arrived at the infirmary they saw Poppy beside Julius, talking to him about something and helping him up from his bed. He was wearing a white hospital gown and his head was wrapped in bandages. Daphne heard Karin sigh in relief.

Daphne approached him with a smile on her face. "Good to see a troll isn't enough to put you down, Black" commented.

Julius smiled wryly. "What are you talking about, I've been down for three days, wasn't I?" He sighed and looked back at her. "Good to see you too, Daphne. What are you..."

His voice faded away and he made a complicated expression as he looked at something behind Daphne. She frowned turned to look behind her. Karin was there, still by the door, with a relieved smile on her face, but she wasn't looking at him.

She noticed his attention and snapped out of her reverie. She frowned and made to leave the room.

"Wait!" Julius shouted, rising in hurry from his bed. Karin already had her back to him.

The two of them stood there in that position. Now, Daphne was completely confused. There was something there, something very complicated.

Still, this wasn't the time to press them yet. She still had to follow the conduct of a Noble house and give their space. She smirked, "Come, Millicent, Tracey."

Tracey smirked as well as she noticed there was something between them. No matter, Daphne would make sure that she would stay silent until they understood what was their relationship.

She turned her back at them and left the room. Poppy had already left. They would be alone there.

Whatever there was between them, was a big secret. She was sure of it, and she would fount it out.

...

Lelouch looked at her back in wonder on his voice. "Kallen?"

She shook when she heard that name. Her hands clenched as if she was holding something back. Lelouch was certain about it, that was Kallen. He understood now why she was behaving so weirdly around him. The pieces fit together perfectly.

"Kallen?" he asked again.

She turned and looked at him. Kallen was clenching her teeth and small tears were gathering in her eyes. There was anger, a lot of anger there.

Just as Lelouch smiled, a strong right punch connected with his face. He flew back on the bed, holding his bleeding nose. She jumped on him, holding the collar of his gown and forcing him back on the bed.

"What the fuck was that?" she growled. "What the fuck was that Requiem bullshit you did? do you have any idea how I felt? Do you have any idea how it is to look at yourself in the mirror every day and know you're a traitor and a failure?"

She was rambling. Lelouch laughed loudly, blood was still falling from his nose.

"Don't laugh, you bastard!" Kallen shook him. "This isn't funny! Stop laughing."

Lelouch only laughed more. He was happy. This was probably the first time he felt truly happy in this world. To think his wild red knight would follow him to death... He should have expected it, she was always only two steps behind him.

Kallen was still shaking him, rambling about something he just wasn't paying attention to. He should have noticed from the start it was her. She _looked_ like her, younger, yes, with a childish face, yes, but still Kallen.

He wasn't alone anymore.

Kallen finally stopped shaking him and pressed her face on his neck, sniffling on his clothes while trembling. "Bastard..." she whispered, letting her tears fall freely. "Fucking bastard." Lelouch held her and patted her back. They stood like until her tears dried.


	22. Chapter 22 - Talk

The next day Lelouch woke up with a smile. His roommates were already getting ready for the day. He got up from his bed, changed his clothes and brushed his teeth before turning to the portrait next to his bed.

"Good morning Nunna." he smiled at his sister. She yawned, blinked her eyes and smiled at him. "Morning, brother."

Lelouch chuckled. "There were new developments," he said as he checked himself in the mirror and brushed his hair. "Tell Cadogan to meet me at the Room of Requirement after lunch."

"Hai!" Nunnally answered.

He chucked his books on the drawer and turned to his sister. "So, what are your plans for today, Nunnally?"

She smiled in excitement. "Lady Tessa, of the third portrait from the second year corridor invited me for a tea party this morning!"

Lelouch nodded. "Be careful of the headmaster, don't be seen and don't mention Britannia."

"Alright."

...

He left for the hall with large steps and a serene smile on his face. Kallen's presence in this world reassured him quite a lot. Having someone to have his back made every difference, especially if it was Kallen.

He sighed. The day before was very emotional to him, he felt drained right now. They had a short talk about her last days on earth, about how his Zero Requiem had weighted on her and on those that were tricked by his play, among other things. They didn't have much time to chat back then, Lelouch insisted that she had to leave the room before someone else saw them. They were lucky Crabble was still under the effects of a sleeping potion. Kallen didn't care about it at all, but considering Lelouch's position right now in Hogwarts, and the fact she was a Gryffindor and a Weasley, things would be very hard on her if they started meeting regularly.

They would straighten things out today. He just hoped she wouldn't punch him again. His nose still hurt.

As Lelouch approached the Great Hall, plans and more plans appeared in his head. The presence of the red queen in the game created new opportunities and strategies that weren't possible before.

He arrived at the hall and glanced at her direction. Their eyes meet only for a moment before they separated again. He sat in his usual seat, beside Greengrass and Millicent. On the other side of their table, Malfoy was a lot more hesitant than before. He lost a hundred points for Slytherin because of Millicent, she was left immobile in front of a Troll and could have died at any moment back then. They said the Minerva gave him legendary scolding that could be heard by half the castle.

"Good to see you well, Black!" one of his housemates commented. Another patted him on the back. Lelouch smiled and traded pleasantries with them. He had already become the new face of the first years in Slytherin. Malfoy slowly fading into the background.

He filled his plate and started eating, noticing the inquisitive glances Daphne was giving him. It was obvious she would have questions about his relationship with Kallen. Lelouch would have to make something up to appease her.

As soon as he finished, he stood up and motioned for Millicent to not follow him. He climbed to the seventh floor and wished for his office in front of the Room of Requirement.

The large banners with the Black Knights crest welcomed him. This time, the room got creative and made two mannequins, just like he found in his mindscape when he was younger. One of them wore his Zero costume, the other one his Emperor robes, each one representing a different face of him.

He looked at the book on his desk and sighed. He was slowly learning about Mind magic. It was a very hard subject, especially to learn alone. From what he understood, the training in mind magic is normally done with two people. Even so, his studies were already helping him understand some things. Some years ago, when he first accessed his magic purposefully, he managed to access his mindscape, a metaphysical representation of his mind that was at the basis of this kind of magic. He tried to access it again but failed every time.

It was probably his mindscape that was giving these clues about his life to the room.

He sat down at his armchair and waited while he swiped his eyes through the book in front of him. Soon he heard the knock on the door and raised his head to welcome her.

Kallen entered with an expression of interest on her face, but not the amazement he was expecting. Well, he should have remembered that she already spent more than a decade in this bizarre world.

She looked at the banners on the wall and smiled. Even the Britannian crest didn't seem to bother her. Her eyes were fixed on the Black Knights crest, they were getting emotional.

"Welcome back, Q-1," He said with a smirk. "Are you ready for the next mission?"

She laughed back at him, cleaned her eyes and made a salute. "Hai, Zero-sama!"

He looked at her, nodded and let an easy smile on his face. "It is good to have you back, Kallen." She smiled back at him and took the chair on the other side of the table.

"So, what are you planning this time, Lelouch?" she asked him. "We are not in a war anymore, there's no reason for all...this" she waved to the room around them. Then she chuckled. "But then again, you wouldn't be you if you weren't trying to take over the world or something."

"Or something..." he sighed. "Most of my reasons for this start and end with the man who calls himself Dumbledore."

Karin blinked in surprise. "Dumbledore?" she said. "What's wrong with him? My family has been friends with him since ever. From what I've heard he played no small part in the fact that my father works in the Ministry today."

Lelouch asked. "I've heard from Daphne..." Kallen's eye ticked in irritation. "That the Weasleys were close to him. What can you tell me about the man?"

Kallen shrugged. "He has so many titles that I often forget them. Right now he is considered Britain's most powerful wizard. It was said that he was the only man Voldemort feared. He is the defeater of Grindelwald too."

Lelouch nodded pensively. "What is his relationship with Potter?"

Kallen frowned in confusion. "I think nothing? except, maybe, the fact that the Potter's are a family that is traditionally aligned with the light."

Lelouch hummed and started to describe his meeting with Harry in the park when he was younger, how he found clear signs of abuse on the boy and managed to involve the police and the child services, and how the old man wiped the minds of everyone involved, including Alice, with the tacit permission of the Matron of the orphanage.

By the end of it, Kallen was frowning, her face unusually serious.

"If that was all, it wouldn't be that worrisome." Lelouch massaged his temples and raised from his seat, approaching the mannequin that was wearing Zero's costume. He took the mask on his hand and inspected it.

"He somehow learned my old name and has been asking the portraits about someone called 'Lelouch vi Britannia'." He scowled. "I don't remember ever speaking my real name in this world."

That wasn't true, he said it to Alice when he was boarding the train to Hogwarts, but he was sure this had nothing to do with that. A muggle was still just a muggle to the people in the wizarding world and Dumbledore wouldn't go searching for a 'Lelouch' in muggle London.

Kallen widened her eyes in shock. "He knows your name, but doesn't know who you are?"

Lelouch frowned. "Strange, right?" he said. "No force in this world could have done that. It had to be someone from our dimension."

Kallen shook her head in disbelief. "Do you think he has some way to communicate with our world? That he knows about Lelouch being the Demon Emperor?"

Lelouch returned the mask to the mannequin and sighed in dejection. "I don't know...I have too little knowledge about this world to make an informed guess..."

He shook his head and continued. "He isn't the only person I'm suspicious of..." Lelouch sighed and turned to look at her. "There are things happening that I don't understand."

Kallen straightened up and nodded. "What do you need me to do, Lelouch?"

He smirked. "For now, I need you to be my eyes in Gryffindor," he said. "That's one of the reasons I don't want you to get involved with me. Keep an eye on my sister as well. She's prone to get into trouble"

Kallen scowled. "I am supposed to protect you, not be your spy."

Lelouch chuckled. "Don't worry, I am going to relieve Millicent from her duties as soon as I can."

Kallen scowled and crossed her arms with a light blush on her cheeks. "See that you do."

"Ah," Lelouch said. "I almost forgot. Room, I need a portrait."

In an empty wall, a portrait appeared, it was empty but for the rolling hills of grass moving on the wind. Kallen frowned "What?" She asked in confusion. Some seconds passed and she crossed her arms with an expression of impatience.

Suddenly, an armored man walked inside it. He was wearing a serious expression and holding his helm on his arm. He went into his knees and put a hand on his chest. "Your Majesty, have you requested my presence?"

Kallen blinked in shock. "Sir Cadogan?"

"Indeed, it is I.," he said, proudly. "And who might be this beautiful lady that is accompanying my lord in this pleasant morning?"

"How-Why-This is..." Kallen couldn't form any words and turned to Lelouch for an explanation. Lelouch smiled at the portrait and introduced her.

"Sir Cadogan, this is Dame Kallen Stadfeld." Kallen looked at him with a bewildered expression and tried to deny it to no avail. "You can think of her as your senior. She will also be your superior. Kallen is also a reincarnator like me and has been serving me and my family faithfully for a long time."

"What? no, I haven't!" Kallen sputtered. Lelouch rolled his eyes.

"She is an extremely skilled warrior and a superb knight. I am happy to have her in my service, please treat her well and heed her orders." He completed.

Cadogan nodded in recognition. "It is an honor to meet you, my lady Kallen. You must be impressive for my liege to accept you as his knight. I will happy to share a seat with you on the Round Table."

"No!, not Round Table!" she said and pointed at the banner on the wall. "Black Knights!"

Lelouch ignored her protests. "If you need to get any message to me, you can ask Cadogan to bring it. If you find Nunnally somewhere, you can also ask her, I am pretty sure she will be happy to see you again, Kallen.

"Nunnally?" Kallen tilted her head.

Lelouch didn't explain. "A happy accident." He shrugged.

Kallen sighed and parsed her mouth. "I will need to talk with my brothers about this..."

Lelouch frowned. "Your brothers?"

Kallen sat on the desk and explained to Lelouch, who was still beside the mannequins. "Fred and George..." She rolled her eyes. "I managed to keep my situation from the entire family, except them." she chuckled. "They found out when I was six. As they say, you can't trick a trickster..."

Lelouch opened his mouth in surprise. "How much do they know?"

Kallen tapped her chin. "Everything."

Lelouch groaned and facepalmed. "Shit..."

The memory of their last kiss appeared in his mind. Did they know about that as well? Damn...He didn't want to deal with a duo of siscon brothers. Things were bad enough already.

Kallen rolled her eyes. "They idolize you, don't ask me why."

His eyes ticked. At least there was some goodwill there...

...

Daphne walked through the hallway. She was searching for Julius, he seemed a lot more carefree after the troll incident, it had to have something to do with Karin Weasley.

She turned at a corner and noticed him approaching from the distance. Daphne hid behind the wall and waited. Why was she hiding anyway? it wasn't like she was doing something wrong...

At that moment she started to hear voices coming from the portraits next to her.

"Lady Nunnally, your hair is so shiny and soft...how do you care for it"

"Hmm, my oniisan brushes it for me, every morning."

"Your brother brushes it? Oh my! It must be great to have such a kind brother."

"Oniisan is the best! I will bring him to meet you sometime."

Oniisan? wasn't that Japanese for brother? Daphne took a peek at the portrait and saw an occidental girl with chestnut hair drinking tea with three older ladies. Daphne had never heard of a portrait having a sibling. Interesting.

It was at that moment that Julius approached. Before Daphne could call him out, the portrait of the girl called him.

"Oniisan! here!" The girl waved at him. Daphne's eye widened and she shrunk herself on the wall to hide from him.

Julius jumped in surprise and noticed the girl. He facepalmed. "Nunnally, how many times have I told you not to call me that around other people?"

"Ops?" she said with an inquisitive voice.

"Is that your brother? he is really a cutie, Lady Nunna!"

"Just...don't do that around people okay? it can pass the wrong message. I have class right now, Nunna, see you later."

"Bye, oniisan."

He left and went to the way of the charm's classroom.

Daphne stayed there in shock. What was that? The portrait...the portrait was calling him brother! Did he ask her to do that? why would he do it? How did he convince her...

Wait...her mother had told her about this kind of thing once...this...

...Is this what they call a fetish?


	23. Chapter 23 - Prelude

Lelouch was returning to the common room after an afternoon studying at the Room of Requirement. As he opened the door, he was welcomed with an expected scene.

Daphne, Tracey, and Millicent were sitting in a corner of the room. Among them, laughing and waving his hands as he explained something, was Blaise Zabini, the fence-sitter who avoided both Malfoy and Lelouch at the start of the year. Lelouch frowned in displeasure. He had expected this to happen at some point, but that didn't mean he had to like it. this kind of dissimulate behavior reminded Lelouch too much of his times in the Britnnian court.

Daphne noticed his approach, stopped smiling and narrowed her eyes at him. Lelouch clicked his tongue. She was welcoming Zabini in their group with open arms, probably thinking of him as a piece she could use to learn more about Lelouch, a mean to an end.

Zabini noticed Lelouch's approach and held his hand in front of him for Lelouch to shake it, his smile failed to reach his eyes and looked somewhat disturbing.

"Greetings, I am Blaise Zabini, it is an honor to meet the scion of the Black family."

His eyes shined with intelligence, though. Lelouch snorted internally. He might be crafty, but did he understood that he was already being used by Daphne?

Lelouch answered with the plastic smile he was so good at. "Julius Black, heir to the Most Noble and Ancient House of Black," he said. Lelouch sat among them and they started to chat among banal things.

On another corner of the room, Malfoy was frowning. Every ten seconds he turned to glare at Lelouch in anger, he was probably still planing something.

Malfoy had no use anymore to him. It would be better if Lelouch didn't have to deal with any more revenge attempts from him. Maybe he could direct the boy to his sister? or to the Potter boy? Lelouch heard they already had multiple disagreements.

Lelouch turned to stare at Blaise. His behavior was very artificial. Lelouch decided he would keep him at arm's length.

...

It was the day of the quidditch game. Gryffindor versus Slytherin. The stadium was filled to the brink with people.

Ophelia stood beside Ron on the boxes, searching for Harry among the players flying in the air. Karin was also beside her, but she wasn't looking at the players. she was instead staring at the other side of the field, searching for something or someone among the Slytherin crowd.

Ophelia frowned, looking at her with the corner of her eyes.

Karin had something of a sensation after she killed the troll at that Halloween night. The fact was soon known by the entire student body. A first-year troll slayer was definitely something Gryffindor could be proud of, the hundred points she got were just a bonus. Flitwick even showed interest in training her, he was well known for having won multiple dueling championships.

She was a weird girl, though. Ophelia had the impression Karin became their friend more out of duty than anything else. There was always this invisible wall around her as if she was incapable of relating to her housemates.

From what she heard from Ron, she was the family's little genius, learning to talk and read before anyone else. She would be the Weasleys dearest daughter if she wasn't so distant from the rest of the family. Karin was cordial with the whole family, but she was only genuine among her twin older brothers.

Without noticing, Ophelia's mind turned to her older brother.

She frowned. She had always felt this same feeling of detachment coming from Julius. It was as if he was living in another time and place, some wonderland she just couldn't see, and it weighed on him. There was a deepness in his eyes she never managed to understand.

Ophelia only found out about his struggle with the troll during the morning of the next day. Minerva had asked to meet her in her office and described the events that happened in the previous night. Ophelia's heart tightened at the time, but she still managed to keep a straight face, burying her feelings away.

She decided to check on her brother that afternoon. Ron and Harry made a scowl when she mentioned it. Karin offered to go with her.

Her brother was laying at the bed. His face, deathly pale, and he was shuddering, clearly delusional, talking to himself with a strange accent she had never heard before.

Julius looked so...normal like this. Where was that...creature that was impersonating him last months?

She shook her head in confusion and looked at the girl behind her. She had only noticed now, but Karin was staring fixed on her brother. Her gaze was steady and grim, there was some kind on inexorable determination there that Ophelia didn't understand.

She looked at her brother again calmly watched his expression.

Maybe she was right, she never knew her brother. She remembered his mocking expression that day at the dinner and clenched her fists. It was as if a hidden facet of him had just suddenly sprung up out of nowhere after being kept in check for years, a facet of him she never knew. Was the Julius she knew a lie?

No, she was certain she had seen the real him once...

_"Lulu...who is she?" Ophelia asked, in a whisper. Her eyes held a touch of reluctance as she stared at the girl's portrait that he had painted. Deep purple eyes, like her brother's, a serene and accepting smile on her face._

_Her brother stared at nothing for some seconds, his eyes empty and soulless. "Don't touch it," he said._

The portrait... She needed to know who was the girl in that portrait. It probably had the answers she needed.

Harry and Ron insisted that he was probably just like her father, a bloodline supremacist that would probably be loyal to Voldemort had him been born thirty years back. Were they right?

At that moment, Ron shouted "Go harry! get that damned snitch!"

Ron was excitedly watching the game. She turned to look at Karin again and followed her line of sight. Far away, on the other side of the stadium, among the Slytherins, Ophelia saw Draco Malfoy waving a flag with his two friends beside him.

He was a ponce and have been bothering them since the start of the year. Ophelia turned to look at Karin again and there was a slight smile on her face.

No way...

She shook her head and stopped that line of thought.

Before her mind could wander anymore, she heard a great commotion at the stadium. Everyone's gaze was up looking at something. There, in the sky, Harry's broom was going crazy, shaking like a leaf on the wind.

"What is happening with Harry?" Ron turned to look at her with alarm in his expression. She took the binoculars from his hands and turned them to Harry while following his movements, she noticed Snape with the corner of her eyes, mouthing something while staring fixedly at Harry's. She was about to comment on that when Harry fell.

Everyone raised from their seats in surprise. For some reason, the protective charms that kept the players from crashing into the ground like a pancake were failing and harry was falling like a rock.

Seconds before he cracked his skull on the ground, his body suddenly stopped in the midair. Everyone turned to stare at Dumbledore, who had risen from his seat and was pointing his wand at Harry. He was frowning with a worried expression.

...

The next morning, Kallen was thinking about Lelouch's words. According to him, there were powers moving at the shadows he that he couldn't contend with yet. She was sure he didn't share with her all his worries, though. He was always hiding things.

The scare Harry gave them all in the previous day brought her mind back to that conversation they had. Maybe it wouldn't hurt to be careful around Dumbledore and the other teachers.

Ophelia and Ron, for some reason, were convinced it was Snape who hexed Harry's broom during the last game. Harry agreed with them and after talking among themselves, they concluded Snape was trying to enter the forbidden corridor on the third floor to steal the object that was kept there. Karin snorted but decided to let them live their little fantasy. Snape would be a bad spy and a terrible infiltrator, he was completely incapable of keeping his scorn for Harry from showing in his face.

At that moment, the owls entered the great hall and started distributing mail. An old and battered owl arrived with a letter and dropped it in front of Kallen. She frowned and opened it.

Suddenly the letter unfolded and revealed itself to be a holler.

_"Karin Weasley! What is this about you fighting a troll that I heard about?"_

Kallen groaned. She could hear the snickers from her housemates around her.

_"Do you have any idea about how much danger you were in? It is an XXXX beast! for Merlin's sake! What did you have on your head when you decided to do..."_

Before it could drone on any more, Karin scowled and pointed her wand at the holler. _"Incendio" _she whispered. The letterburned into cinders and slowly drifted away to the ground. The entire hall was staring at her in bewilderment. Ron was snickering at her and whispering something on Harry's ear. Ophelia was trying to hide a grin.

Kallen sighed. Her relationship with Molly was confusing at the best of times. In her previous life, she was the one who had to take care of her mother after her father remarried and her brother died. Kallen never got used to being mothered the way Molly does. It restricted her and sometimes felt like a chain she just couldn't get off from.

Her father was way more easygoing.

They finished breakfast and went to the DADA class.

...

Kallen was bored out of her mind. Quirrell was almost another Bin, he could turn an exciting class like DADA into a very unpleasant experience. She glanced at Lelouch on the other side of the hall and gritted her teeth in anger when she saw him talking with Zabini.

The boy's mother was legendary in the wizarding community. She was widowed seven times, and every one of her husbands died in suspicious circumstances. She was a true black widow. This Blaise Zabini was probably cut from the same cloth as her. Kallen had to inform Lelouch about it. She would have to keep an eye on the boy and to keep him as far away from Lelouch as possible. It would be better to just erase his existence, but alas, this wasn't Japan, nor she was a terrorist anymore.

She turned to stare at Daphne with curiosity. She wasn't sitting at Lelouch's side anymore. Tracey was sitting between them for some reason and Daphne glanced at Lelouch from time to time as if trying to solve a puzzle.

Kallen wasn't paying attention to the class until the teacher called Lelouch's new name. It was strange because Quirrell didn't stutter at all when he called him.

"So, Mister Black," he said, curving his mouth upwards. "Can you tell the class what is the difference of a Jinx, a Hex and a Curse."

Lelouch nodded and answered calmly while looking at the teacher. "Of course professor. A jinx is a type of magic that..."

They were staring at each other in a way that disturbed Kallen. Somehow it reminded her of those standoffs you see in movies, with each opponent anxiously waiting for the other to move.

Suddenly, Lelouch groaned and closed his eyes. When he raised his head, he was glaring and scowling angrily at Quirrell.

Quirrell fell kneeling on the ground, with blood dripping from his nose. Kallen thought she saw him mouthing the word "_Bitch._" under his breath.

Lelouch rose from his seat under the stupefied eyes of the other students left the classroom in a gait. There was an ugly expression on his face, one that promised revenge.

Quirrell struggled from the floor and laughed away the entire situation. "I-I s-seem to have fo-forgotten to ta-take my pills t-this morning." He said with an embarrassed chuckle.

The entire thing felt like a prelude to something.


	24. Chapter 24 - Greetings

Lelouch was furious. He barged into his office in the Room of Requirement, closed the door shut, and started pacing angrily while passing his hands through his hair. An angry scowl on his face.

He halted suddenly and approached the table where his book on occlumancy was resting, "The Mind Palace", the title said. He moved his eyes through some sections, closed it and sighed. He was now certain about it. Quirrell had tried to intrude in his mind.

He took the book and threw it on the ground in anger. His pacing quickened. and his hands clenched and unclenched. He felt utterly violated. His last bastion, his strongest weapon, ignored and invaded on a simple whim.

He _felt _it at the time... the insidious invasion, like a tendril of power entering his brain through his eye, searching and twisting inside his thoughts. His occlumancy was by no means skilled enough to block it, he couldn't even access his own mindscape yet, but for some reason, his body reacted to Quirrell's attempt. His nervous pathways sent him feelings of discomfort coming from his right eye and he noticed it for what it was.

He stopped suddenly and his eyes widened. That feeling on his eye...that wasn't the first time Quirrell tried to read him, was it? He had tried it before, Lelouch deduced, and for some reason, he failed, otherwise he wouldn't be trying again now.

Why Quirrell failed? Lelouch knew nothing about occlumancy at the time, it shouldn't have been possible for him to stop the professor. Lelouch pursed his mouth. Why was Quirrell trying to read his mind anyway? had he noticed something strange about Lelouch? And why did he fail? Considering their respective knowledge in magic, that shouldn't have happened.

Lelouch smirked. There was something about him that could keep his mind protected. Maybe something related to his transmigration?

It was a good guess as any.

Should he try to alert someone? Legimancy was prohibited by law, even if done on children. Lelouch sighed. Considering who he was, it was doubtful anyone would believe him, and even if they did, he was just a powerless orphan right now, no one had anything to gain by helping him risk becoming Quirrell's enemy.

Worse, it would put him in a spotlight.

There was still another question though. Where did this strange interest Quirrell had on him come from?

He sighed. There was something strange about the man. The acting, and now his multiple tries at invading Lelouch's mind...

Lelouch sighed and sat back at his study.

...

Voldemort strode through the hallway with an impatient scowl on his face. The green-haired girl had appeared again. She somehow made his legimancy snap back like an overstretched band of rubber. The backlash caused little damage to his mind, but a lot of damage to his ago.

How could this pathetic, arrogant child resist him? that should have been impossible.

The girl must be some kind of mental construct, probably magic from the Black Family. How did he gain access to the Black grimoires? wasn't he an orphan who had no access to magic until his Hogwarts letter?

At first, Voldemort had been interested in the boy. He had the right mindset to be one of his death eaters, a little too straightforward, but he had the right idea. With time, Voldemort would have been able to bring him closer to his inner circle. His control over the Black family had gone down to the drains since Regulus betrayal. Of course, he still had his loyal Bellatrix, but she wasn't in the line to inherit the Black family. Instead, Sirius was.

With his death, Draco Malfoy would have become the new Lord Black. The discovery of Julius had thrown his plans out of wack and also given him an opportunity. He could still secure the Black family if he brought the boy to his side.

And so, Voldemort decided to pick Julius' brain apart to see how it ticks, to find what he wants and offer him in trade for his loyalty. To find the best way to approach the boy and bring him to his organization.

Everything should have gone perfect, but then, there was the green woman, the mental construct of the Black family.

He growled in anger. She was so infuriating. Right now there was nothing he wanted more than to grasp her neck and strangle the life out of her.

_She smiled as she playfully twirled her hair._

_"A small man with delusions of grandeur." She said. "A man that will leave no great legacy to be admired after his death, only pain and death. A pathetic child who believes immortality to be a boon." _

_She smirked. "It seems a dark lord is still many grades below a demon emperor."_

Voldemort clenched his fists as he remembered her monologue back then. How did she know about his interest in immortality? This mind construct of the Blacks was certainly very powerful if it could invade Voldemorts shields. He wanted that spell for himself, it could even counterattack his legimancy.

How did the Black boy found this spell? Did his sister possess such ability as well? It was possible. Maybe he should get some answers out of her.

He had to admit it. Voldemort was wary of the boy. There was just something about him that got his nerves tingling. Nonetheless, he had more important things to worry about. This body he was wearing was starting to break down. Soon, not even unicorn's blood would be enough to keep it moving. He had to find the philosopher's stone as soon as he could.

He was already aware of the traps Dumbledore had prepared. Quirrell was there to see them prepared after all. Voldemort was just waiting for the right opportunity when Dumbledore left the country for a meeting with the ICW.

What did he have in his mind when he took the stone from Gringotts Voldemort would never know. Dumbledore was getting on his years it seemed.

...

Kallen returned to the Griffindor common room still confused with the recent developments. What happened between Lelouch and professor Quirrell back then? For some reason, she thought it was important.

She searched through the common room. Harry was with Ron, Ophelia, and Neville. The frightened boy finally got over the fact that Ophelia was a Black and started connecting with her. There was still some weariness there, but nothing compared to his terror of Lelouch. Kallen smirked, the mere thought of Lelouch was enough to constrict Neville's throat. Kallen found that funny. Out of everyone here, he had the most fitting reaction. There was no escaping the fact that Lelouch could be terrifying if he wanted.

As her eyes wandered through the room, she found what she was looking for. Her brothers were in a circle chatting with Jordan. She gave them _that_ _look_. They noticed, before looking at one another and shrugging. They rose from their seats, traded some words with Jordan and followed her to a concealed spot in a corner of the room.

"So, what is it that our troll-slaying little sister wants to talk about this time?" Fred said.

"I think I know, Fred. She probably wants to hunt another kind of beast, a more dangerous one, A troll is too easy, right?" Geoge nodded knowingly.

Fred widened his eyes comically. "Do you think so, Fred? What do you think she wants to hunt?"

Geoge smirked knowingly at her. "A demon lord, Fred," he said. "She wants one just for her..."

Before he could finish it, Kallen kicked his shin.

"Ouch..." he said.

She sighed and started explaining while looking at George on the eyes. "I've revealed myself to him. It is really him, George."

They blinked. Fred whistled. "Heh, I can almost imagine the emotional reunion."

Geoge sighed. "I hope he doesn't plan something like he did the last time, Karin. I know you are capable, but I don't want you embroiled in any world-changing revolutions again."

She chuckled. "I will try," she said and sighed. "That said, he just can't seem to keep himself out of trouble..."

She then told them about how he met Dumbledore in the orphanage, how Dumbledore seemed aware of Harry's abuse, as well as his recent conflict with Quirrell, which Kallen still couldn't make heads or tails of.

The twins heard her with an unusually serious expression.

"I find that hard to believe, Karin," Fred answered, a small frown on his face. "I know he is important to you, but Dumbledore is...well, he is _Dumbledore_. If Dumbledore really did what Black told you, then he must have had a reason for doing what he did."

Kallen clenched her fists, she should have expected this reaction ou of them, after all.

George nodded as well. "As for Quirrell, he might have been overreacting. From what you told me, Lelouch lived his entire life downing in backstabbing politics. He probably has some screws loose, and he is probably paranoid about a lot of things."

Kallen gritted her teeth. "What about Dumbledore's knowledge of Lelouch's name?"

"What do you mean?" Fred questioned.

Kallen took a deep breath and explained. "Dumbledore has been asking the portraits about a Vi Britannia Family and someone called Lelouch," she said. "Lelouch has no idea of how Dumbledore found out about his former name.

Geoge frowned pensively. "Are you sure this is true?"

Kallen noded "He suspects Dumbledore somehow got in contact with people from his former world. He thinks someone might have found out back there about his transmigration and is currently searching for him."

Fred narrowed his eyes. "And how would they have found out he is a wizard? or that he lives exactly in Britain?" he said, frowning pensively. "It may be something else..."

...

Lelouch had just left the charms class and was walking back to his dorms. Daphne and Zabini were walking each at one of his sides. Among their own group, the Gryffindors stuck close to each other. From the distance, he saw Kallen's serious stare. He deduced she wanted to know what had happened at the DADA class. "Tomorrow" he mouthed. She nodded silently. Daphne seemed to notice it but didn't interject.

She has been strangely silently recently, was she avoiding him? why?

He shook his head. He had more important things to worry about. Quirrell's strange behavior...Dumbledore's unknown plots. Sometimes it felt like he was back in Britannia, he snorted.

As he strolled through the twisting corridors of Hogwarts, in front of him, two boys stood, each on one side of the corridor, next to three pairs of armors. Their red hair and playful smile denounced them as the Weasley twins. Lelouch knew then that they were waiting for him.

As he was about to pass them, the two of them bowed, along with the other six armors. Daphne scowled and glanced sideways at Lelouch. He chuckled.

"We greet the great Demon Lord, may you shine your evilness upon this world." One of them recited.

Daphne changed her pose and sighed in exasperation. Zabini frowned and looked at Lelouch quizzically.

"We want to swear our loyalty to your evil reign, and deliver this world from boredom." the other one said.

Lelouch intoned with Zero's voice, as he played his part on a character. "You shall soon be introduced to my evil base." he declared haughtily. "Ask Q-1 about it. Right now, I have matters to attend."

He passed by them under the weirded eyes of his year mates.


	25. Chapter 25 - Curious

Daphne stared at Julius in suspicion.

Her mother had told her, multiple times, to avoid people like him. She had many names for them, but most of the time, she just called them "perverts".

Was Julius one of those? At first, after seeing him talking with the painting and having it call him 'Oniichan', she was certain of it.

Now, seeing him there, in the Common Room, she wasn't so certain. He seemed tense after his weird exchange with Quirrell, looking at his sides as if he was expecting an attack. He had closed himself a little more. His smile was a little more strained.

Maybe she could ask him about the portrait. What was her name? yes, Nunnally.

As Tracy droned on about something, She watched him playing a game of chess with Zabini.

His skill in chess was surreal. To be honest, not even her own father could defeat her as fast was Julius did, wasn't he a quasi-muggleborn? someone who lived among muggles for most of his childhood?

At that moment Daphne's eyes widened in realization.

She _watched_ Julius. The way he moved his hands, the way his smile had just the perfect width at every moment, the way he relaxed back on his seat.

It was as if he was permanently playing a character. As if he was on always on a high-society ball. That wasn't the kind of skill a muggleborn or a muggle raised child developed on his own, before getting involved with the wizarding world. Did he have ties with the muggle nobility? It was possible, his name was Julius, a direct reference to the Roman emperor. she clicked her tongue and relaxed back on her seat.

Julius was slowly revealing himself to be a bulk of secrets. Every time she looked a little closer at him, a new incongruency would suddenly pup up.

She bit her lips and her breath quickened. At first, she thought of him as just a lucky bastard, literally. A bastard child of one of the noblest families of the wizarding world that abruptly found out about his origins and his hidden fortunes, like a male cinderella history. From poverty and misery to money and fame. He was sly, alright, the way he took care of Malfoy showed he had a sharp mind, but that was all.

Now, she suddenly noticed a deepness that was there since the start. He had training and behaved like a damn prince.

His relationship with Karin was also baffling. And the Weasley twins this afternoon...what was that about?

Curiosity was consuming Daphne. Nunnally. Karin. The twins. Quirrell. What was that about Lelouch that made him so strange?

As he finished his match with Zabini, he relaxed back on his seat while holding a Black Queen on his hand and staring absentmindedly at it. Zabini left for something, and at some point, Tracey noticed Daphne wanted to talk with Julius. She left with Millicent for somewhere with a knowing smile on her face. Daphne frowned, Tracey was having the wrong idea and making her own assumptions about Daphne's intentions.

Julius returned the piece to the board and smiled at her. His purple eyes blinking at her "How about a match?"

She agreed and changed seats. As always, Julius stood on the black side. He always insisted on playing the black side. Did it have some meaning to him?

The first piece he moved was the pawn in front of the king. A classic one that allows one to free the queen for a Scholar's Mate. Daphne nodded in understanding. It was his next move that shocked her

"The king?" she asked. That was a very strange movement, something a beginner would do, and Julius was certainly no beginner.

His eyes took on a distant gaze and he smiled. "If the king doesn't lead, how can he expect his subordinates to follow?"

She frowned. that revealed more things about Julius. Did he have experience leading? She narrowed her eyes at him. He had been leading their little group since the start, even though he was only a half-blood, and only now she noticed how smoothly their current dynamic was established.

She understood this logic about leading, but could it be applied to chess? No, it couldn't. Moving the king immediately after moving the pawn would open him up to attacks. He did this out of sheer stubbornness. He wouldn't allow himself to stray from his ideals, even if it was just a game, even if keeping them would be prejudicial to him.

What an interesting person...

She decided to press him to see if he could reveal a little more about himself. She had to keep him out of balance. He was about to move the king again when she suddenly said. "Nunnally."

He halted and turned to stare at her with narrowed eyes. He was completely guarded now.

"Where have you heard that name?" Julius asked.

Daphne's breath quickened. He wasn't asking, he was demanding, she could feel an undercurrent of threat in his voice. For some reason, she felt a compulsion to answer. She couldn't help herself, the words sprung out of her mouth before she even noticed.

"I saw you talking with a painting," she said, hastily. "It called you 'brother', and it seemed close to you."

The strange pressure disappeared, but Lelouch was still frowning. He turned his gaze to her eyes and said in a tone that didn't accept defiance. "You will tell no one about it," he growled. "It has nothing to do with you, it is a bad habit to pry on people's secrets. Everyone knows what happened to the curious cat."

She nodded tersely. Her heart was still beating fast. Julius...He really had an incestuous relationship with a portrait, didn't he? and he was terrified of anyone finding out about it.

It was another point he had in common with the nobles of the wizarding world. All of them had these kinds of quirks, according to her mother. Maybe he was truly raised by another wizarding family, his muggle orphanage being only a cover. Who then? And how has no one noticed it?

Too many questions and not enough answers.

...

Lelouch returned to his room after a day of classes. He had already arranged a meeting with the twins for the next day. Kallen had told him they were skeptical of Lelouch's claims. Lelouch could understand it, he was about to test their loyalty towards Dumbledore, and hopefully break it down.

Dumbledore wasn't his biggest problem at the moment, though. He was still just someone to keep an eye on. Quirrell, on the other hand, has been actively antagonizing Lelouch.

He approached the portrait above the headboard of his bed and called Cadogan, who was standing beside Nunnally while she read a book in the garden.

"Cadogan."

"Yes, my lord?" he nodded

"I need you to keep an eye on Quirrell. Forget about Dumbledore for now. I want to know everything possible about the man. Especially about any kind of inappropriate behavior that could see him out of the school. That would be ideal."

Cadogan frowned pensively. "I can try milord, but I am just one man."

Lelouch nodded "You can ask the other paintings as well about his coming and goings. Did you do what I asked you?"

Cadogan scowled. "I am trying, my king, but creating a spy network under Dumbledore's attentive eyes isn't easy. There are still some friends of mine who were loyal to the Old Kings of the Britons at the time of their painting. I managed to convince some of them"

Lelouch nodded. "Keep it up, then," he said and sighed. "I am considering bringing you help, but I still haven't mastered the magical part of painting a magical portrait. Nunnally was a lucky accident."

Cadogan smiled. "Worry not, my lord. I will have answers soon."

...

Flamel...Nicholas Flamel, that was the name.

Hagrid slipped the information to them by mistake. Ophelia narrowed her eyes as she mused. What snape was trying to steal had something to do with this Nicholas Flamel person.

Ever since Harry's near-crash with the broom, she has been wary of Snape. The man hated both harry and herself, for some reason. He didn't even try to hide it.

During the afternoon, they gathered in the library to find information on this Flamel person. They were sitting on a table. Ophelia looked at Karin with the corner of her eyes, the girl was always close by, but for some reason, she didn't mix well with Them. Ron said she was always like this, a little reserved.

She unnerved Ophelia. There was something between her and Julius, and Ophelia had no idea what it was. When did they have a chance to know each other?

As the hours passed by, they found none of the information they were looking for. Their search was in vain. There was nothing on this person in the library.

Ophelia sighed and went back to the shelves, in hopes of finally finding something in the next book. Harry and Hermione were still concentrated on the books they had on hand, trying to search for anything on the man. As she read through the titles on the bookcase, she felt someone approaching her from behind.

At her side, Daphne Greengrass stood, looking at the titles in front of her. Ophelia frowned.

She had heard about Daphne. The heir to one of the sacred twenty-eight. Her father was an important member of the Wizengamot and one of the leaders of the so-called "gray faction", a group of politicians that are said to believe in keeping the old magical traditions while at the same time accepting muggleborns in their society.

The girl was beautiful and intelligent, but her aloof personality and her Slytherin disposition scared people away. According to Ron, she was like a snake hiding on a bouquet of flowers. Although she had a high station, she didn't have many friends and most people didn't want to deal with the mess that comes with becoming her friend. Ophelia was about to snort when the girl called her.

"You are Julius' sister, aren't you?" she said. A slight smile curving on the edge of her mouth.

Ophelia snarled and glared at her. "What do you want?"

She was already waiting for some scathing comment. Slytherins had a strange compulsion to bully the Gryffindors, Malfoy was like this as well. Ophelia glared at the girl and waited for it

Greengrass closed her book and returned it to the shelf before looking at Ophelia. No...inspecting would be the right word. She stared at the girl from bottom to top before stopping in her eyes.

Daphne pursed her mouth and opened it. "You know Julius since you were toddlers right?"

Did Ophelia know him? No, she didn't, but she nodded nonetheless. "What of it?"

Daphne nodded pensively. "Was he overly affectionate towards you when you were little?" She asked.

What?

She was so surprised by the question that she just answered by reflex. "No, he was rather distant..." She shook her head to clear her confusion and snarled back at the girl. "Why do you want to know?"

Daphne nodded again. She seemed to be deep in her thoughts. "Do you have a sister? One that looks more like Julius and has purple eyes?"

A sister? No, she didn't have one. Purple eyes? Her mind went back to the portrait Lelouch had on the art room back at the orphanage. Ophelia frowned and answered absentminded. "There was a portrait..."

Daphne's eyes shined. "Tell me about the portrait."

Ophelia blinked and growled back at the girl. "Why should I?" she said. "This has nothing to do with you."

She picked a book on the shelf and walked back to the table. She noticed that Karin wasn't there anymore. Ophelia sighed in relief and sat back to read the book in her hands.

...

AN: I'm not very satisfied with this one, but I have a policy of never rewriting chapters, so here it is.


	26. Chapter 26 - Mirror

Daphne had a winner's smile on her face. Ophelia had also seen the portrait of that girl before, she concluded. Lelouch had a special feeling for the person depicted on it, a feeling he didn't have for his real sister. The puzzle was starting to fall into order.

She left the bookcase to return to her seat and glanced back at the mop of red hair on the other side of the bookcase. Karin was there, silently leafing through a book. As soon as She noticed Daphne approach Ophelia, she conveniently placed herself in the best position to overhear what they were talking about.

Daphne smirked.

_Interesting..._

...

"I need a book on Nicholas Flamel..." Lelouch stated as he drummed his fingers on the table.

Kallen was with him in the Room of Requirement. She had just introduced her twin brothers to him. They were sitting on a square table the room had conjured for them while staring in awe at all the symbolism present in the room.

Soon, a large book appeared, atop of the table. "Introduction to alchemy", the title read.

"Alchemy?" Karin frowned.

Lelouch frowned. "So it seems," he said, opened the book and started to sweep the pages looking for anything about Nicholas Flamel. Meanwhile, the twins had risen from their seats to inspect the room, especially the mannequins next to the wall. Lelouch glanced at them with the corner of his eyes and clicked his tongue.

For all their talk about "swearing loyalty to his evil reign", the twins were quite guarded around him. Lelouch mused if Kallen had noticed it, was this an indication of their loyalty towards Dumbledore? Lelouch had already shared his impression of the man with them, but they seemed rather skeptical of him.

Lelouch frowned as he caught a word on the book with the corner of his eyes. "Philosopher's stone?" he said.

"Did you find anything?" Kallen asked as she raised her head from the book she was studying. She had been the one to warn him about his sister's little quest against Snape and about this Flamel person.

Lelouch nodded dully "Apparently, Flamel is a famous alchemist that created a magical artifact called philosopher's stone. It that can grant immortality to the user." he explained and snorted. "As if immortality is worth anything... C.C. had always despised her own."

Karin frowned at him "Do you think Dumbledore really has it here in Hogwarts?"

Lelouch noticed one of the twins paying attention to their conversation from where they were standing. This was a good opportunity to erode their faith in Dumbledore. "From what my sister heard from Hagrid, it is the only conclusion that makes sense. Didn't Potter visit a vault in Gringotts that was keeping something important? did he say how big it was?

Kallen frowned. "A brown packed with the size of a snitch, he said."

Lelouch leaned back on his seat and smirked. "So, we can conclude Dumbledore took the stone from Gringotts, one of the most secure places in the world, protected by homicidal goblins and hungry dragons alike and decided it would be safer in a school filled with children. Did he even consider he might be endangering us by keeping it here when it seems certain that a dangerous wizard is searching for it?"

"Hogwarts is the safest place in wizarding Britain." one of the twins approached with a slight smile on his face before seating in the chair in front of Lelouch. Lelouch nodded in agreement but added. "Indeed, but it is still a school full of children though," he said, tilting his head and explaining "Children tend to do things without thinking. Why would he announce to the entire school that the third-floor corridor would be inaccessible at the pain of death? why the third-floor corridor anyway? wasn't there a better place to hide?

"Do you have a theory then?" the other twin approached. It would take for Lelouch to be able to tell them apart.

Lelouch narrowed his eyes at the discarded chessboard on the corner of the table. He stared at the white king and tapped his fingers on the table pensively. "This is familiar..." He mused, thinking back on his time in Britannia.

He raised the corner of his mouth. "Dumbledore is setting a stage for a play," he concluded and turned to look at Kallen. She would understand what he was talking about. "He is preparing to make a move in a game he has been playing with someone."

"A trap then?" Kallen frowned.

"Possible," Lelouch answered. "He is planing to turn Hogwarts into a battlefield."

One of the twins clenched his hands. Lelouch smirked inwardly.

Kallen nodded slowly, trying to digest it. "In that case, who would be the other player?" She asked.

Lelouch leaned back and looked at his sharp Q-1 and smirked. "An old enemy of Dumbledore. One who wishes for immortality. One which Dumbledore is prepared to sacrifice a school filled with children to defeat. I don't know much about Dumbledore, but there aren't a lot of those, right?"

One of the twins frowned at him. "You-Know-Who is dead."

Lelouch blinked at him, feigning confusion. "When did I say it was Voldemort? I was just listing the characteristics of this hypothetical enemy based on Dumbledore's actions," he said. It was unimportant if it was Voldemort or not. To Lelouch, what mattered was that the twins believed it was and that Dumbledore was failing in keeping the world safe. _That _was his game.

"But you implied." the boy answered.

He shrugged. "Might be one of the Dark Lord's followers as well, someone Dumbledore is especially fearful of, or an old enemy from Grindelwald's insurrection," he said.

The other twin interjected. "Do you think it is Snape, then?"

Lelouch shrugged. "Not likely. He has been a teacher here for how long?"

The twins looked at each other and turned to answer. "Bill had classes with him since his first year."

Lelouch nodded. "It probably isn't one of the professors," he concluded and elaborated. "The stone was being kept on Gringotts, this hypothetical enemy had no reason to be a teacher at Hogwarts before it was moved inside it."

The boy frowned. "What about teachers that were hired after the stone was moved?" he asked.

Lelouch raised his right eyebrow. The other twin frowned and looked at Lelouch in realization.

"Quirrell." He answered. "There is a curse on the DADA teacher position. The teacher changes every year. This is Quirrell's first time teaching at Hogwarts."

Lelouch pursed his mouth. Things were now closing into a circle. "I already have some assets keeping an eye on him, there were no strange moves from him yet." The twin blinked in surprise.

"But didn't he try to invade his mind?" Kallen scowled. She had been incensed with Quirrell since Lelouch told her about that.

Lelouch nodded. "He is certainly suspicious, but let's not jump into conclusions yet."

One twin cleared his throat and addressed Lelouch. "About Dumbledore knowing your name. George has a theory."

"Hmm, what is it?" Lelouch asked.

"We think that, maybe, you were mentioned in a prophecy by your previous name." the twin called George said.

Lelouch widened his eyes.

Prophecies were a thing in this world! he should have expected that... This changed everything. Considering his extradimensional origin and his supposed ancient celt blood, it would be reasonable to consider the possibility of his real name being mentioned in a prophecy.

Lelouch almost snarled right there. That must be the reason. Someone in Dumbledore's position would certainly have access to many seers.

Lelouch felt a strong sense of urgency. He had to know what that prophecy said about him.

...

"Yeah," said Harry with happiness overflowing from his face. "My parents were there in the mirror!" he said. "I called Ron afterward, but he couldn't see them."

Ophelia heard their account with interest, but she seemed distracted by something, occasionally glancing at the Slytherin table for some reason.

Kallen narrowed her eyes in suspicion. A mirror that showed his dead parents? that didn't sound like light magic. It sounded dangerous. Why would it be left uncovered in an empty room?

Ron nodded his head hastily, food splashing around him. "I saw myself as a head boy." He said and commented dreamily. "Blimey! I looked so good."

They decided to check on it on that same night.

Before the curfew, and after dinner, they walked through the corridors. until they arrived at an average door. Harry pushed it open and guided them after him. In the middle of the room stood a two-meter tall mirror. Faded inscriptions were written on their borders. It looked old and decayed like it had been forgotten in a storage room for years on only now brought there.

_Mirror of erised._ The inscriptions said.

Harry approached the mirror in fascination and sat at the floor in front of it as if hypnotized by what he was seeing. Ron had a smile splitting his face as he approached the mirror.

Ophelia had the most interesting reaction. There was a strange mixture of longing and guilt on her face, she soon turned her face away and glanced at Kallen.

Kallen sighed and approached the mirror to see what it was about. She'd rather avoid it, but she was already here anyway.

Inside the mirror, there was another Kallen, an older one. She was standing beside Lelouch. He was wearing his emperor's robe. While Kallen was beside him, wearing the same robe Suzaku did when he was introduced to the world as the Knight of Zero.

Kallen sighed. She had always been aware of her jealousy towards Suzaku, but to have it thrown like this on her face was really eye-opening. His strange bond with Lelouch was far stronger than her own, it made her very insecure about herself. He was also the one to stand beside Lelouch in the end, during that blasted Requiem. There was always a small feeling of inferiority inside Kallen since they first faced off at the feet of the thought elevator on Kamine Island.

Nunnally was standing up beside Lelouch on the mirror, he had a hand on her shoulder on silent support. Surprisingly, at a corner of the mirror, C.C. stood, smiling slyly at the scene.

Kallen realized the Mirror was showing her life if Lelouch hadn't completed the Zero Requiem and had instead stayed as Britannia's Emperor. She would have stood beside Lelouch as his right arm, and maybe even his wife, from the looks they were trading with each other inside the mirror.

She snorted. As if Lelouch would stay with only a single wife...Britannia's royalty was culturally obligated to have more than one wife to have a great number of heirs, in order to realize Britannia's ideal of Social Darwinism.

The Mirror did not consider this. It was only showing Kallen her fantasies, her desires, with no root in reality. She immediately lost interest in that mirror.

...

After they had calmed down from their encounter with the mirror, Harry told them his account of the meeting between Snape and Quirrell he overheard when he was searching for clues about Flamel on the restricted section.

"You think Quirrell knows about Snape trying to get the stone?" Ophelia interjected. "Maybe he would believe us!"

"Or maybe he would tattle to Minerva and we would get a month of detention." Kallen rolled her eyes. She decided to stop the idea before it could grow roots. The entire account had a completely different meaning to her, it indicated that Quirrell was up to no good.

Ophelia was going to argue, but before she could open her mouth, Hermione arrived with a large book and dropped it on their table. She rolled her eyes in exasperation.

"I had you looking in the wrong section," she said, as she opened the book and swept through its contents. She arrived at the part about the philosopher's stone and told them how it could allow a wizard to achieve immortality.

"So, this is what Dumbledore is keeping on that corridor. This is what Snape is searching for!" Harry concluded.

...

Lelouch scowled from behind the desk as he heard Kallen's account. "Detention? In the Forbidden Forest?"

So... his sister and her idiot friends got caught by the Malfoy idiot when they left the castle during the curfew to meet with Hagrid. The 'punishment' is to do something a lot more severe than breaking curfew. The black forest is the home of an array of magical beasts and is said to be especially dangerous at night. These people lack common sense.

"What is the sense in forbidding entry into the Forbidden Forest if entering the Forbidden Forest is punished by making the guilty party enter the Forbidden Forest?" He exhaled in exasperation while pinching the bridge of his nose. "I will never understand magicals."

Kallen shrugged. "If Dumbledore is allowing this, it can't be that dangerous." Lelouch glared at her.

"What?" she challenged, glaring back at him.

Lelouch sighed and relaxed on his seat. "Forget it," he said. Cadogan still had found nothing on Quirrell, but Quirrell's recent conflict with Snape filled Lelouch with a sense of urgency. The twins were also working on it, but Lelouch still didn't have their full trust.

Kalle twirled her wand and started to practice against the dummies. Lelouch stopped his studies to watch her move. At a certain point, she abandoned the wand in favor of her fists. It seemed pounding Charles' face had the same kind of therapeutic effects to her as it had to him.

He turned back to the book and continued reading it. He felt he was very close to accessing his mindscape again.


	27. Chapter 27 - Forest

Classes had ended for the day. Lelouch returned to the Common Room to find Daphne and the rest of his 'friends' chatting in a corner. Zabini was among them, reading a book. Tracey was playing with something that resembled a magical cube. Daphne noticed his approach and quirked her lips at him.

Lelouch clicked his tongue. She has been getting curious about him recently. From what Kallen told him, Daphne had already stopped his sister more than once to question her about Lelouch. Every answer she got only made her more curious. She was becoming a headache really fast.

She has also been approaching him more and more to play chess and she was using those opportunities to figure him out. He should have been more forceful when he told Daphne not to pry in his life. At first, he thought that approaching her would allow him to get the support of her family, but it seemed that the Greengrass patriarch was reluctant to approach the political nightmare that Lelouch was. He now regretted trying to befriend her. She was only trouble.

She waved at Lelouch and pointed ad the ready chessboard on a corner of the room. "Another game?" She asked.

Zabini glanced at Lelouch from behind his book and waved at him. Malfoy was glaring at him from the other side of the room, as always. Lelouch sighed and accepted the challenge.

Daphne followed his moves with attention. After his third turn, she asked him. "Where have you been these days?" She asked. "Queen to 2-D."

Lelouch moved another piece and answered calmly. "What do you mean?" he said. "Pawn to 5-F"

Daphne quirked her mouth again and waved her hair out of her face. "You've been disappearing recently, in uncommon hours." She stated. "In the morning, just after breakfast, or after dinner, before the curfew. I think Millicent knows what you have been doing, but I don't want to press her."

"Queen to 1-D," Lelouch said. "Why does it concern you what I have been doing?" he asked. Millicent hadn't told her about the Room yet. She was no Kallen, but maybe Lelouch should start to consider if it would be a good idea to bring her into his inner circle.

She smirked. "Why wouldn't it matter to me? You are my friend," she stated, unashamedly, as she quirked her mouth with a mischievous smile. Was this girl really an eleven-year-old? She was way too sharp. "I wouldn't want you involving yourself with the wrong sort."

"I am now curious as to whom you consider the wrong sort," Lelouch raised his eyebrows.

"There's a lot of people like that..." she said as she wetted her lips and narrowed her eyes at the board as if noticing something about Lelouch's strategy. "Like the Weasleys, for example."

Lelouch's eye ticked. "They are an...interesting sort."

Daphne snorted. "I wouldn't want to see you involved with their unrefined sort. There are better prospects out there."

Lelouch nodded. "I will keep your words in mind." he made his last move and grinned haughtily at her "Checkmate."

She glared at him and turned her face to inspect the board. Lelouch had prepared a trap about ten moves ago that only now she noticed. Daphne scowled and glared at him. "With skill like that, you should be playing in the international leagues. I find it hard to believe an ordinary orphan can have that level of ability."

Lelouch smirked at her. "So, I am ordinary?"

She gritted her teeth at him. "You know what I am talking about!" she growled. "Even my father can't win against me that fast," she said

"Ron Weasley..." she continued, while rolling her eyes in revulsion "Is the current champion of the British Junior League of wizard's chess. My match with him in the finals took almost an hour, and you defeated me in ten minutes. This is not normal."

Lelouch didn't pay a lot of attention in most of what she said, but there was a word that strongly caught his interest. "Junior League?" he asked.

Daphne shrugged. "A championship for under sixteen wizards and witches," she explained. "It happens a week after the end of the school year, in a coastal wizarding village in northern England. There is a prize of a thousand galleons for the winner. It's funded by the Ministry of Magic, for some reason."

Lelouch almost stood up in surprise. He had forgotten that the wizarding world put the same weight on chess as Britannia did.

He had been worried about what he would do to fund himself before his majority, he didn't want to depend on Hogwart's charity. What he hadn't noticed was that he could just do the exact same thing he did in Britannia, after all, the wizarding world was full of arrogant nobles ready to gift him their riches in chess wagers.

"A thousand galleons?" he asked with interest. "How can I sign up for it?"

Daphne inspected his face, scowled and clicked her tongue. "I shouldn't have told you that, now I will also have to contend with you as a competitor." She sighed and massaged her forehead. "At least I will have the pleasure of watching you handing Ron Weasley the beating of his life."

...

Ophelia scowled as she glanced at the blonde bastard who put them into this situation. Malfoy was following them grudgingly, muttering about telling his father something. She was only recently made aware that he had a disagreement with her brother in Slytherin that saw Malfoy slowly becoming a pariah there.

Julius...

He was there in the mirror, his hand on her shoulder, and Miss Alice's hand on both of her shoulders as they smiled back at Ophelia.

What was going on on his mind? He seemed to get stranger every day she saw him. It was as if someone else had started wearing his body.

For most of their childhood, he had always been the timid one, rarely interacting with others, always in his own world. As soon as they arrived on Hogwarts, his personality shifted 360º. He suddenly became ruthless. He started having the people skills of a politician, skilfully waving through the maze that was Slytherin, even becoming close friends with Daphne Greengrass, one of the most influential heirs attending Hogwarts right now.

She had indeed heard whispers about a rivalry going on between her brother and Draco for Daphne's hand in marriage or something. Ron even commented that her brother might be viewing for the Greengrass fortune.

Was Julius always this sly?

It was as if something had suddenly woken inside him. Some half-forgotten part of himself that had been sleeping since he was born.

They followed Filch to Hagrid's Hut, where he greeted them with a smile. Filch snarled. "You will be serving detention with Hagrid tonight." He said and looked at Hagrid with disgust. Hagrid returned him the same look. Filch spat on the ground in front of him. "He's got a little job in the Forgotten Forest."

"The Forest?" Draco jumped in. "I thought that was a joke!"

Filch turned his head to him. His face was like the dried bark of a tree, there was not a shred of humor there. "Do I look like a joker?"

Malfoy shook his head hastily.

"Good," Filch grinned.

"Alright," Hagrid interjected. "Let's goo. Follow me, eyes on the road."

As they entered the Dark Forest, Ophelia watched the gnarled branches making a tunnel above them. It was colder inside the forest than outside. The sounds of branches moving were mixed with those of things moving and distant shrieks and howls.

Somewhere along the way, Hagrid stopped to inspect something on the ground. From his hand, Ophelia could see a dripping ooze that looked like liquid silver. Hermione watched in amazement. "What is that?" she asked.

"What we came here for." Hagrid narrowed his eyes at the substance, conveying the gravity of the situation. "Unicorn's blood," he said. "The poor creature has been hurt badly by something. We are going to search for it."

He turned to the students around him, made a headcount and nodded to himself. "Harry will come with me," he said. "Ophelia will go with Ron, and Malfoy will go look for it with Hermine."

"What?" Malfoy protested. Hermione glared at him. "Why do I get the Mud-muggleborn?"

Hagrid ignored him "We will meet again at this same place in ten minutes."

Malfoy grumbled.

...

Voldemort drank another mouthful of blood with fervor. Quirrell wouldn't be able to sustain this possession for much longer unless he acquired the stone. Voldemort clicked his tongue, such a poor quality container for his soul...Even so, he would still find a way to reward Quirrell after this. His loyalty deserved to be recognized.

The taste was sweet and metallic, a mixture of honey and rust. The aftertaste, though, was really bad, it tasted like rotten meat, depression, and self-hatred. Enough that it would make an ordinary man end his own life right there. It was no surprise drinking unicorn blood is said to cause curses.

He suddenly stiffened. Some distance away, a pair of...children were approaching? this deep into the forest? He snorted, Dumbledore really lacked common sense these days. They were approaching but still hadn't noticed him. Voldemort lowered his head to drink another mouthful while he thought about what to do. What would the board of directors think when they found out children died in Hogwarts due to Dumbledore's mistakes?

If they were aligned with his death eaters, he would allow these children to leave unscathed, maybe just a small obliviation to keep things simple. Otherwise, they would become just another casualty on his and Dumbledore's war.

"Is that..." It was a girl's voice. he rose his head and inspected them from under his robe. From where they stood they would only see shadows when looking at his hood.

It was a girl. She resembled that piece of shit Sirius Black and looked remotely like Bellatrix._ '_

_Another Black on Griffindor. _Voldemort mused. A half-blood, born of a blood traitor, without a hint of pride on her own ancestry. To someone like him, blood traitors were even worse than mudblood.

He had watched her through Quirrell during his classes. She was nothing like her brother, she was worthless. She was her father and uncle through and through. He clicked his tongue. The boy beside her...Voldemort rolled his eyes in disdain. Another Weasley, such disgusting pests.

The Black boy came back to his mind, he was an enigma Voldemort was still trying to solve. The green woman as well, the strange mental construct on his mind...

His eyes alighted. Maybe this girl had the answer to some of his questions, and if she didn't, he could still use her as a living example for what happens to blood traitors.

As the girl approached, she noticed his form squatting on the ground, next to the dead unicorn. The boy's mouth opened in apprehension.

"What is _that?_" the boy whispered, wide-eyed, as he stared at Voldemort's form.

He didn't wait anymore, Voldemort jumped right at them and caught the girl by the throat. She screamed in horror, while the boy fell on the ground and crawled away while staring at the scene in terror.

He grinned as he stared at her eyes. Her mind was open to him.

"Look at me, girl," he whispered with a hoarse voice, unrecognizable. The girl's eyes were shifting widely as she tried to get away from him. Voldemort growled again. "I won't as ask again, child." He said and increased his grip on her throat. "Look at me."

"Expeliarmus!" The boy that had fallen on the ground shouted. Voldemort felt a slight twitch on his arm where the spell hit and snorted. The boy had risen up and was aiming his wand at Voldemort, fear dripping from his expression, his feet shifting as if he wanted nothing more than run straight out of there.

Voldemort gnarled at him, arrogant child. "Sectumsempra!" He spelled.

The spell hit the boy on his shoulder. He fell on the ground with blood slowly painting his clothes. Voldemort ignored him and turned to look at the girl.

She was glaring at him with bared teeth now, even as she couldn't see his face, holding the arm that was gripping her neck, with the nails slowly entering his flesh. "Ron..." she muttered with her strained neck.

Voldemort used the opportunity to end this. he penetrated her glaring eyes and searched her mind for anything relating to Julius Black and the Black family. Ignoring every obstacle and shattering everything in the way.

The first memory he saw was that of a playpen. There were clouds painted on the walls of the room and big toys made for children spread around it. Many children were playing around the pen. Ophelia Black seemed to be about two years old. She was babbling at her brother who was sitting on the ground and seemed to be bored out of his mind. The child...sighed? and looked at his sister. The only adult in the room was sitting on a corner completely absorbed in reading a colorful magazine.

Julius looked ad his sister and said "This is utterly boring, isn't it? I honestly don't think I will be able to endure another year like this."

Voldemort frowned. What the hell? Was this really a child?

The girl babbled while tapping her brother. She smiled, sat back and clapped for no reason

The boy scowled at his toddler sister as if irritated by her lack of proper response. "I am happy for you. At least one of us find this situation amusing." he quirked his mouth in a half-smile.

The scene shifted. This time they were at an amusement park together with a muggle woman. Voldemort scowled. From the way he was interacting with her, the boy wasn't really a supremacist like he made everyone think, was he? He has almost managed to deceive Voldemort.

The boy seemed abnormally alienated to the world around him, like a piece of another puzzle that just didn't fit right in this one. He won his sister a dog plushie in a shooting game and that was probably the warmest point of their outing.

The scene shifted again. And again. And again. Voldemort was starting to get angry. The girl was useless. She had lived beside her brother for many years, but it was clear to Voldemort that she knew nothing about him.

Suddenly the scene stopped at a portrait of a girl with the same lilac eyes as Julius Black. For the first moment since his dive into the girl's mind, Voldemort saw the boys mask slip away. There was guilt there, and reluctance. The girl on the portrait meant more to him than his own sister. Interesting...

Then there was the scene at the Great Hall. The boy looked down at the girl as he poured juice at her face with a twisted smile. Voldemort noticed then. The boy was playing a character. With a clear view of the entire picture, Voldemort could see that there was a lot more to the boy's declarations during the Sorting Ceremony than he let out. He was becoming a greater enigma with every new thing Voldemort learned about him.

The boy wasn't a pureblood supremacist like everyone though. He was just a very good liar.

There was nothing in her mind about the Black family, though. Nothing about the ominous intelligence her brother had as a child. Nothing about the green-haired woman. In the end, the girl was useless.

He growled. "What about the green-haired woman!" He shouted at the girl while shaking her. "What about the Black Family magics?" He snarled at her and stared at her choking face. "Who taught your brother? tell me!"

As he stared into her mind, nothing new appeared in her mind.

He snarled "Stupid child,". The girl was still trying to get away from his grasp. "So easily deceived."

He threw her beside the bleeding boy on the ground. She rolled on the dirt and coughed, finally managing to get her breath again. "I can still use you, though." He grinned. "It has been some time since I passed this kind of message to Dumbledore. He is still treating our battle like a game. It is time for him to learn that the game is over."

The girl raised her head and glared at Voldemort, aiming her wand at him while still squatting on the ground. Not bad, she was brave, it was a shame she was a blood traitor and daughter of Sirius.

Voldemort grinned sadistically. "Cruciatus."


	28. Chapter 28 - Name

Harry was following Hagrid as he cautiously walked through the root-filled soil. It was hard not to trip in this place, especially in the dark, as it was.

Suddenly, a piercing screech tore through the air. He recognized that voice.

Ophelia!

Hagrid looked at Harry with shock on his face. The shadows cast by the lamp highlighted his hurry.

"We need to go after her!" Hagrid almost shouted. He turned to the direction the voice came from and hastily made his way through the twisted branches, tearing them away with a machete he took out of his clothes as he dashed forward.

Harry followed him in trepidation. Ophelia's screams hadn't stopped yet. They made his body freeze at the same time his blood boiled and screamed for retribution. Someone was hurting her, _torturing_ her.

At first, Harry had been cautious of her, especially after Ron had told him about the Blacks. His prejudice slowly disappeared after Harry saw Julius scorn her in public at the Great Hall. She wasn't that different from himself, after all. She was also an orphan and had a family that despised her. She was brave as well, braver than him. Sometimes Harry asked himself if she wasn't more worthy of belonging in Griffindor than he was. After all, the hat wanted to put him on Slytherin for a reason, right?

The more he interacted with her, the more he noticed his Slytherin side. It flustered him at the same time it made him amazed by her.

As he followed Hagrid through the grove, they soon arrived at a clearing. Ophelia was resting on the ground. Her face was plastered with sweat and there was a red liquid flowing from her nostrils. Above her, a half-horse half-man stared at the distance. Baring his teeth at a retreating shadow. His bow was ready and pointing at the distance.

"Cursed abomination..." The thing muttered and lowered its bow.

Hagrid nodded at the...man? "Firenze, good to see you." He said and bent down to hold Ophelia. She was breathing unsteadily, twitching every second as if someone was pricking her with a needle.

"This is..." Hagrid muttered.

The other man scowled. "Curse of pain," he said, still staring at the distance. "It seems we found out who was killing the unicorns." He said and looked at the sky, searching for something up there. He frowned "And his foolishness might have cost him his life, after this"

Firenze stood there, gazing at the stars, and muttered as if reading them. "And as the dark lord awakens, the ruler shall rise again to his throne, in fury and madness."

Hagrid frowned in confusion but said nothing.

The centaur sighed and turned to Harry. "You must leave this forest, Harry Potter, this is no place for one such as you," he said as he put his bow on his back. Harry was surprised he knew who he was. Hagrid was holding Ophelia as he nodded gratefully at the centaur.

Harry stared at the centaur and asked, hoarsely. "What was that thing?"

The centaur turned to look at him and continued. "It is a terrible thing to kill a unicorn. Drinking its blood can prolong life but at the cost of a cursed existence..."

He approached Harry and lowered his face to look into his eyes. "Do you know what is hidden at your school at this very moment?" He said pointedly.

Harry widened his eyes in realization.

"A last piece of advice for you." The centaur said with a conflicted expression on his face. "Your worst enemy might be hiding as your greatest ally, and your greatest ally might be hiding as your worst enemy."

Harry frowned. The man nodded to himself one last time and rode away, leaving Harry puzzled. What was that about?

...

It was supposed to be an ordinary day.

Lelouch rose from his bed and got ready for breakfast. His mind on his latest studies on dark magic and his plans to relieve wizard lords from their riched through chess.

As he arrived at the Great Hall, he soon noticed the strange atmosphere of the Gryffindors. They were quiet that day and some of them were purposefully scowling at him. There was some new development he wasn't aware of. Kallen glanced at him, her expression was grim. Lelouch frowned as he went to his seat on Slytherin's and turned his eyes to inspect the other table. Harry was alone beside Neville. Ron and Ophelia were nowhere to be seen.

Lelouch frowned. The detention at the Dark Forest... Something happened there. Something serious. Lelouch clenched his hands but kept and impassive face.

He ate in trepidation. He had already planned on meeting Kallen before Lunch, she would be able to enlighten him. Daphne kept glancing at him during breakfast as if expecting a greater reaction from him, he just smiled serenely at her, if she was expecting him to blow up over this, she would be disappointed. Did she know what it was all about anyway?

As they finished their meal, Dumbledore rose from his seat to address the crowd. "Some of you might have already noticed that two students aren't here today," he said. "Yesterday, during detention inside the Dark Forest, Ophelia Black and Ron Weasley were attacked by a dark creature." Lelouch twitched. "They will recover in time. I want to use this chance to remember you all to keep away from the Forbidden Forest. It is forbidden for a reason. That is all."

Lelouch frowned. His information was lacking and very vague.

When they were returning to the Common Room, Daphne glanced at Lelouch once more and called for his attention. Lelouch lowered his head to hear her. Daphne whispered into his ears. "Pansy was at the infirmary at the time Hagrid arrived with Ophelia and Ron on his arms." She said. "She overheard that Ron was hit by a Cutting curse."

Lelouch frowned. A curse meant a wizard was behind it.

"As for you sister..." she said. "Cruciatus overexposure, they said. They don't know if she will ever wake up."

Lelouch stopped suddenly and the middle of the hallway. Daphne turned to look at him, with a slight smile on her face, probably glad to get a reaction out of him. Lelouch stared back at her, his expression still serene. Something was raging inside of him, though. He ignored it and smiled beatifically at her.

"And what of it?" he said. Daphne stared at him for some seconds, clicked her tongue and left for the Common Room in a hurry. Lelouch suddenly turned on the next hallway and left for the seventh floor, to the Room of Requirement.

...

Kallen hurried through the corridors of the castle. Her flying lessons with Ravenclaw had just ended.

Harry was extremely worried over his friends. As soon as he arrived at the infirmary he was driven off by Madam Poppy. All the other teachers had gathered there. They gave no explanations to Harry, just told him to come afterward. He is probably visiting them right now.

Kallen, on the other hand, had to check on Lelouch. The last time something like this happened, it expelled the end of The Black Knight's first rebellion.

She rushed through the seventh year corridor, did the ritual to open the door to the Room of Requirement and rushed inside.

She stopped and blinked at the scene in front of her.

There were broken bookcases spread through the room. Lelouch's table was split in the middle. His mannequins were broken and shattered, among pieces of many dummies that resembled Charles, Quirrell, and Dumbledore.

He was in the middle of it all, pacing in the middle of the room. His eyes were shining with a sickly purple light, vaguely resembling a geass. He noticed Kallen and raised his head to stare at her, snarling with barely restrained anger.

"Two paintings had seen Quirrell leaving the grounds of the castle just before Ophelia's detention," he explained, almost growling. "This is a provocation, towards me..." He froze and his expression suddenly shifted into despair and realization. "This is my fault..." he whispered and brushed his hair with his hands in a nervous gesture. His expression was shifting between rage and horror.

Kallen approached him hastily and slapped his face with force. He stared at her for some seconds and she scowled at him. "Get your shit together, Lelouch," she said.

Lelouch breathed in deeply and went for his table after recovering his calm exterior. Kallen sighed and smiled at him in relief. The Room reconstructed the table for him. He sat down on is chair and started drumming his fingers.

Cadogan was on a portrait by the wall, also wearing a grim expression.

"He returned to the school minutes after she was brought back here," he said and frowned. "He seemed satisfied about something." The knight continued.

Lelouch scowled. The chances that Quirrell had done it were very hight. Lelouch wouldn't take this lying down. He crossed his fingers and rested his chin on his hands. He had plans to make.

...

Lelouch spent the next days in a stupor. Quirrell was still the same during his classes, except for a strange glint of interest he had in his eyes when he glanced at Lelouch.

Ron recovered three days after the battle. His memories were hazy, but he remembered a hooded shadow and a spell being thrown at him. As for Ophelia, the school was holding its breath. No one was sure if she would wake up, or if she would still be the same after waking up. There were some harrowing examples of cruciatus' overexposure, after all, Neville's parents being just one of them.

Lelouch became even more vilified after the 'accident'. Somehow, he was taking the blame for that from the Gryffindors. Harry Potter especially seemed to despise him. Lelouch's silence about it all had become just another flag pointing at his guilt.

He already had the beginnings of a plan to deal with Quirrell, but five days after the incident, some new information arrived for him.

As he arrived at the Room of Requirement, he noticed there were already three people there. The Weasley twins were sitting on a table in the middle of his office, Kallen was there was well. Everyone had grim expressions.

Lelouch frowned and approached them. "I didn't expect you to come today." He said to the twins.

One of them made an uncharacteristic scowl. "Tom made it personal..." he said.

Tom? he had never had of this person before. His confusion must have appeared on his face because the twin took a piece of paper from his robes and showed him.

Lelouch opened it but it was blank. The Weasley approached him and touched the paper with the tip of his wand while chanting. "I solemnly swear I am up to no good," he said.

Suddenly, the blank note came to life, It was a map, and points were moving on it with names above them.

"The Marauder's map." He explained. "It is a map of Hogwarts that shows everyone currently inside it and their respective names."

That was impressive. If that was true, this map had unparalleled strategical value.

The twin sighed. "We weren't taking you suspicion of Quirrell seriously until our brother almost died for it. We decided to tail him, follow his trails, see if there as any truth to your caution towards him." Lelouch raised his eyebrows at him. So, they _found _something.

"When we closed on him with the map, we immediately noticed an incongruency," he said. "At the time, he was alone in the corridor, but the map was showing two names on the place he was standing on. There was his name, Quirinus Quirrell, and the name of another person, one Tom Marvolo Riddle."

The silence stretched.

The other twin concluded. "We believe he is possessed,"

They stood there in silence for some seconds before Lelouch raised the corner of his mouth in loathing and asked. "Who is this Tom Riddle?" He almost growled.

One of them shook his head and sighed. "We have no idea. The only thing we are certain of is that there is an award for him in the Trophy room."

Lelouch scowled. "Have you asked the teachers about it?"

He shrugged. "We are planning to tell Dumbledore about it. He might be able to do something."

Or he might already know...

Lelouch sighed. "What did Ron and Harry had to say about their encounter."

The twins stared at one another and shrugged with a derisive smile. "They seem to think that the one they faced in the forest was Voldemort himself." he snorted.

Lelouch narrowed his eyes and thought about it. The fact that Quirrell was searching for unicorn's blood indicated he is in death's door. It fitted with the hypothesis that he was trying to steal the Philosopher's Stone.

What was most baffling in all this is still the fact that, under the assumption Quirrell isn't the real target of his trap, Dumbledore decided to create a complex trap to capture this Tom person, whom Lelouch had never heard off, exposing an entire school filled with children to danger and to the constant contact with such hazard.

That meant that Quirrell, Tom, or whatever wasn't ordinary in the least. But Quirrell was a well-known wizard with a known background. That meant the real danger had to be the shade possessing him.

Tom Marvolo Riddle. Lelouch clicked his tongue. He had asked the Room about anything it had on this person, but the search came empty. It was as if this person had never existed in Magical history.

But how could someone who had never existed worry Dumbledore so much? That was impossible. It meant he had to have operated with a pseudonym, like Lelouch himself did with Zero. A pseudonym only Dumbledore knew about.

He took a small notebook from his desk's drawer and wrote down two names. The first one was his own, Lelouch Vi Britannia. He made an arrow pointing down and wrote "Zero" in the respective space. Next to his name, he wrote 'Tom Marvolo Riddle', made another arrow and wrote down a question mark.

He drummed his fingers as he stared at the name. His eyes soon narrowed as he identified a pattern.

"I don't think it is a good idea to tell Dumbledore about it..." He said, slowly. His mouth quirked into a sly grin. Immediately he took a pen and started permutating Tom's name letters. Kallen and the twins stared at him in astonishment while he worked on it, an amused smile blossomed on his face. When he finished, he chuckled and turned his notes for them to see.

"I am quite sure Dumbledore is well aware of it already," Lelouch smirked. "After all, Tom is just another name of an old friend of his"


End file.
